Natural Search Engine Optimization

What is Natural Search?

"Natural" or "organic" search refers to the unpaid search results that appear in search engines like Google, MSN, and Yahoo. There are two main search classifications: Natural Search and Paid Search. While Paid Search refers to paid advertising (such as Google AdWords), Natural Search refers to all unpaid search results and is based on relevance.

Improving your ranking in Natural Search is a terrific way to drive more traffic to your listings, Store, and other pages. In turn, this can lead to improved sales and conversions for you.

How does Natural Search work?

Search engines like Google, Yahoo and MSN each have a different algorithm to determine how to rank a page for each search query. If you conduct a search for a product on each of the search engines, you will find that the search results differ. While search engines have different algorithms and methods for ranking pages, there are two things that all search engines deem important:

1) Content
2) Linking & Finding

Regarding CONTENT

• Content is king: The content you have on your page is the key to securing high search engine rankings. Search engine spiders don’t read images, so graphics-heavy pages with little content will not rank well. To make images useful for search engine optimization, use alt tags. With these tags, you can insert keywords and tell spiders what the image is about. Spiders love content and that is the most important element they take back with them to the search engine index.

• Identify keywords that are relevant to your business, and make sure they are part of your content. For instance, if you sell digital cameras, make sure that keywords such as "digital cameras", "digicams", "digital photography", "digital photos" etc. are part of your text copy. Remember: Search engines cannot read text embedded in images.

• Place keywords that define your business in important areas of your page, such as your title. The title tag (the text you see on the blue bar of your browser) is one of the most important areas of your page when it comes to search engine optimization. Search engines give more importance to keywords that are in headline tags.
• Repeat these keywords in your description.

• Use keywords as anchor text: Anchor text is the text that describes a link. Instead of saying "click here to read more", use keywords. For example, your anchor text could be, "Canon Powershot digital camera buying guide".

Regarding LINKING & FINDING

Search engines regard links from other sites to your pages as endorsements. The more quality endorsements you have, the more "popular" your page will be considered. Links also help search engines like Google find your pages. Think of these external links like street signs, helping search engines navigate to your web pages.

Here are some simple ways to increase the number of external links to your pages:

• Get links from partner sites, distributors, associates etc.
• Add URLs to directories like the Open Directory Project, which is free: http://dmoz.org/

How can you create content?

There are many free and easy ways to drive Natural Search traffic. Below are just a few examples:

1) Add keyword-rich content to your listings – Repeat keywords in your listing title and description. For example, if you’re selling a digital camera, be specific and say "Canon PowerShot SD700 6 mega pixel" and use those keywords in your listing to reinforce what your page is about.

2) Create an About Me page – If you don't have one, create one today. About Me pages are free real estate for you to describe yourself, instill trust, and link to your other site pages.

3) Write Reviews & Guides –Write Reviews & Guides about your area of expertise. This gives you the opportunity to demonstrate knowledge, convey trust, and link to your listings and site pages. In other words…contribute to blogs.

4) Add content to your web Store - If you have an web Store, add content about yourself and your listings. Repeat the keywords you want search engines to associate with your page.

5) Add relevant links to your other pages and content – Link your About Me page to your listings, Reviews & Guides, Blogs etc. Cross-linking between your pages will also help search engines to find your pages.

Search engines are democratic

If you have an off site blog or webpage, you can link it to your listings, About Me page and other site pages.

How does this help Natural Search?
One of the most important factors influencing your search engine ranking is link popularity. Link popularity is a score based on the number of external sites providing a link to yours. Typically, the more inbound links you have, the more important search engines will deem your site to be.

The quality of inbound links also matter. A link from an authoritative industry portal will count for more than a link from an unknown site. A link from a site that has high PageRank will weigh more than a link from a site that has low PageRank.

Here are some simple ways to increase the number of links to your pages:

• Get links from partner sites, distributors, associates etc.

• Include your URL site in member directories of industry associations.
It is important to remember that search engine optimization is a slow process. If you are a new site, expect a couple of months for your page to show up on search engine results. A little patience can be richly rewarding in the long-run.

Find Unique Gemstone Bracelets, Earrings and Necklaces at Dizzygirl Jewelry.

Find books, toys, clothing, software, jewelry, beads, pottery and collectibles at the Circle of Stores.

That History of Beads Part 1

HISTORY OF BEADS

MINI SERIES PART 1

Present in all cultures and at all times throughout history, beads have a fascinating story which spans the globe. We explore the world over. Looking at the areas from which beads are originate and examine how beads are used, as a form of money, and as a show of wealth and power.

The origins of beads

Beads have been made on all continents since they first appeared over 40,000 years ago. Initially using local materials, many regions developed specific bead designs and techniques. These spreading during times of migration such as under the ...

Roman Empire

With the discovery of new continents by explores such as Marco Polo and through trading, especially from the 15th century onwards when the world was flooded with European beads. Because of the movement of beads and techniques, the exact origins of the bead and the route on which it may have traveled can be difficult to trace.

THE AMERICAS
South and Central America have long, sophisticated bead-making traditions. North America's native beads made from the materials such as quill and wampum, were replaced by imported European beads when the continent was colonized.
North American beads was introduced to the Americas by traders and explores such Columbus, whose first act on landing in 1492 was to offer beads to the Arawak Indians. Featured in Indian bead work are rocailles, and bugles turquoise, coral and silver. True freshwater pearls are found in the Mississippi river basin.

European
Bead making, present in France since 38,000 BC, flourished with the Romans, Byzantines, and Vikings.

Northern Europe

British whitby jet beads exported since the Roman occupation, were most popular in the Victoria era. Today top quality beads are made from local woods and porcelain. Amber is native to the Baltic coast Indistinguishable from Venetian glass, many beads were made in Amsterdam circa 1550-1750 and imported into Africa and North America.

France

In Oyonnax, southern France, the plastic bead trade replaced the 19th century horn industry. Greece produces silver filigree worried beads and colorful and decorated ceramics. Italy: The Roman glass industry evolved into a bead center on the Venetian island Murano, which dominated the world bead trade from the Renaissance. Millefiori, chevron, seed beads, and decorated lampwork typify the tradition. The export trade in glass bars explains the similarity between beads from different countries. Coral has been carved for centuries in Naples.

Part 2 in the HISTORY OF BEADS, we will discuss Beads from Central Europe, Japan China and other parts of the Far East.

You can find Quality Beads, Amazing Prices & Fast Shipping! We are committed to customer service. Stone beads, Fiber optic cats eye beads, Czech, Swarovski,Glass, Seed beads for all your bead, beaded and jewelry projects at my store, Beads.

My Shade Garden

I just realized that I haven't written anything about my Garden. I've been blessed with 2 balconies, one which faces North East and the other faces South East. I love it because I get to have a shade garden and a sunny garden for all the gorgeous annuals every year. My front balcony is like another room and because I live in a temperate climate I can use the patio for a very long time. I even have a little BBQ out there.

Because it’s a balcony then I have to do container gardening. I have all sorts of shade plants and they do really well. Each year I keep thinking that I’m done and I end up adding another plant or change a container or move things around. I can’t even imagine what I would do if I ever had to move. My plants would take up half the truck.

I find gardening very calming even though it can be a lot of hard work, especially the side balcony because I have to replace a lot of the plants each year. I even grew little tomatoes last summer. Who knew that 4 little plants would give me buckets of tomatoes. Needless to say, I gave a lot away to friends and neighbors.

I thought I would just show you some pictures of the front balcony. It’s completely covered so I can sit out there even if it’s pouring rain. I have Hostas, Ferns, Ivy, a small Japanese Maple tree, Bamboo and some smaller low light flowers. Begonias seem to do well out there.

I just realized this last picture shows the fountain when I have all the plugs and cords hidden. I also realized that I don't have a picture of my table out front. I have a large round glass table that I can sit at and just enjoy the view. I have a spotlight in the bamboo plant so it's very calming and peaceful at night. There's an oriental influence to the garden. Can you tell? I get a lot of inspiration from my garden and use the natural elements and color play in my jewelry pieces.


Find Unique Gemstone Bracelets, Earrings and Necklaces at Dizzygirl Jewelry.

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The Art of Cross Stitch

One of my hobbies is cross stitching. For those of you who don’t know what cross stitch is, it is a form of embroidery that uses “X” shaped stitches to create pictures. Sound simple? For the most part it is easy, but as any experienced stitcher can tell you, count wrong and an entire project can be ruined!Cross stitching has been around for centuries. It was used in the Middle Ages to decorate clothing. Samplers also appeared during this time. Designs were stitched without the benefit of a pattern and were often placed on cloth at random. In 1500, the first printed patterns appeared, but they were very simple designs of flowers and animals.

Red dye became widely available during the 1600’s. This started the “Red Revolution” in which all cross stitch became red designs stitched on white cloth. Samplers became a way for women to practice writing by stitching alphabets.

Since the 1700’s, patterns similar to what we know today have been produced. Landscape patterns appeared, as well as many other realistic designs. Cross stitching was taught in schools until the late 1800’s. Women from all walks of life practiced the art.

Today, if you can imagine it, it can be stitched. Photographs can be used to create stitching patterns. Computer programs can be purchased to create custom designed patterns. And enter any craft store and you’ll find hundreds of patterns and kits with designs ranging from angels to zebras, and everything in between.

I’ve cross stitched most of my life, an art taught to me by my grandmother. I’ve stitched designs large and small, and often create gifts for the people in my life using cross stitch.

I carry cross stitch patterns and kits in my store, Prairie Post Emporium. I also occasionally add my own cross stitch work for purchase. Stop by often to check out the selection, as it’s always changing!

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The Truth About Gemstones

The title is a little misleading as I really want to discuss the terms Precious and Semi-precious gemstones. You hear and read statements such as “Diamond, Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald are the only true precious gemstones. The rest are considered semi-precious” or “Emeralds, Rubies, Diamonds, and Sapphires were precious by definition and everything else, regardless of relative value, was semi-precious”. This is now somewhat misleading as it suggests that some gemstones have inferior value. Actually, all stones are now considered precious and their prices are determined by the availability and quality of the gemstone. But, you will still see these terms on a regular basis. I even slip myself.

The two groups of gemstones are Mineral gemstones and Organic gemstones. Mineral gemstones are naturally growing rocks found in the earth's surface. There are 16 groups of mineral gemstones, including: Beryl, Chrysoberyl, Corundum, Diamond, Feldspar, Garnet, Jade, Lapis Lazuli, Opal, Peridot, Quartz, Spinel, Topaz, Tourmaline, Turquoise, and Zircon.

Organic gemstones are not as durable as gemstones from minerals, and consist of four groups. Amber, a fossil resin found in the sap of ancient tree pines, usually lacks a crystalline structure. It is most often brown or semitransparent and mined. Coral is calcium carbonate extracted from the sea when a small marine animal, known as a coral polyp, uses it to build a protective home for itself. Gem coral ranges from semi-translucent to opaque and can be white, pink, orange, red, blue, violet, gold, or black. Jet is a black fossilized coal that can be used for making beads. Pearl is formed inside an oyster, or any other mollusk that deposits substances inside of its housing. Mollusks creating pearls can be found in either fresh or salt water, but salt water pearls have traditionally been more sought after for use in jewelry. This is changing however, as the Japanese have developed new methods of creating freshwater pearls that are uniform and round -- the 2 greatest attributes of saltwater pearls.

Here are a couple of examples of what I've been talking about. Pink Sapphire is a really hot stone in jewelry-making right now. It's not one of the "Big Four" yet it has a value that is right in league. Padparadja Sapphire is one of the "Fancies" and is exquisite with its delicate blended shades the color of fresh salmon and sunsets. The gemstones in this picture are all Sapphires. Needless to say, mineral gemstones are stunning.

Round, symmetrical Pearls have always been prized, but the mistakes or mishappen ones are now gaining a following again. They are called Keishi Pearls and they come in Rose Petal or Corn Flake shapes. Keishi pearls are formed when the mollusk ejects the pearl bead nucleus but continues to make a pearl. Like other freshwater pearls, some are natural colored and others are enhanced. Either way, they are a glorious looking Pearl. Just look at these fabulous Platinum Keishi Pearls.

For more information on gemstones, the following link will take you to a fascinating chapter of a book on gemstones. It is very easy to read and extremely informative.

www.secretsofthegemtrade.com/images/chapter2.pdf

Find gemstone Bracelets, Earrings and Necklaces at Dizzygirl ~ Unique Artisan Jewelry.

Find books, toys, clothing, software, jewelry, beads, pottery and collectibles at the Circle of Stores.

Five Ways A Blog Helps You To Market Your Business

I discovered this interesting article about the value of a blog in one of the ezines I subscribe to. I thought it would be interesting to share this with you.

By Michael Murray

Want to advertise online without spending a fortune? Get a blog.

If you're an Internet marketer, you need a blog, because:

• a blog helps your site to rank higher in the search engines; and
• a blog expands your customer base.

Blogs are often called social marketing tools, because they let you interact with your readers via comments and permalinks (see the glossary below.)

What's a blog? Get up to speed here:

• http://www.blogger.com/tour_start.g
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogs

Let's look at five ways a blog helps you to market your business.

1. A blog helps your site to rank higher in the search engines.
   
   In 2003, when Google bought Pyra Labs, the company which developed Blogger, the reaction was Huh? At the time, blogs were seen by most as online journals, primarily maintained by the demented and teenage girls.
   
   How times change. In 2006, companies small and large are using blogs to promote their businesses. This is because Google and the other search engines love blogs because of their constantly updated content.
   
   Blog often, and you'll get more visitors and a good search engine ranking.
   
   
2. A blog expands your customer base – you'll reach people you could reach in no other way.
   
   A blog helps you to reach people you can reach in no other way because your frequent updates mean that you'll automatically get niche visitors – those people who have no clue about you or the product that you're selling, but who happened to type in a search engine query that mentioned words you used in a single post.
   
   Those niche visitors can become buyers, and this means that you don’t need to struggle to get top listings in any search engine. Write (or link to) quality content, and your visitors will find you.
   
   
3. A blog helps your site to differentiate itself.
   
   A blog is a form of stealth marketing. Therefore a blog doesn’t need to be about the products you're selling. A blog can be about any topic that you're passionate about. Blog about your passion, and mention – in passing – the products you're selling. You can also link to them, but don’t bother selling heavily – that's not what a blog is about.
   
   
4. Like a diamond, a blog is forever.
   
   Although the most-visited blogs update often, some of them several times a day, that doesn’t mean that you have post more often than you can fit into your schedule. Your permalinks (see below) mean that since your blog items are standalone pages, they’re indexed by search engines in the same way that any HTML or other page is indexed – your blog items/pages will continue to bring traffic even if you don’t update very often.
   
   
5. A blog attracts new opportunities. A blog makes your business visible.
   
   Your stealth marketing efforts will attract the attention of people who may become joint venture partners, or who will have other opportunities for you.

The time and energy that you invest in your blog can bring results beyond your wildest expectations. Create a blog – it's your hardest-working, and most cost-effective online marketing option.

GLOSSARY:

Blog = Web log.
Permalink = permanent link, an URL for a single blog post.
Comment = blogs have a comments section, where readers can interact with the blogger and others.

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More on Turquoise and Coral Jewelry

Coral

White is the most common color in coral, but a variety of other shades can be found, including pink, orange, red, and black. The rarest color is a deep red. Coral is commonly enhanced to improve its color and durability. White coral is bleached. Pink coral is permeated with a colorless wax and orange coral is stabilized with a polymer. Black coral is sometimes bleached to create gold coral, although gold can be a natural color of coral as well. Occasionally, red coral is dyed to deepen or to make its color more uniform. All commonly used forms of coral enhancement are stable.

There is an ecological concern regarding coral and a lot of the coral reefs are dying off due to pollution, changes in water temperature and poaching. To combat this concern all coral reefs are protected by various governments and coral sea farms have been created for Coral Reef Rehabilitation and Integrative Biological research, especially in the South Seas and Australia. There is apparently still enough supply, either from new sources or stockpiled inventory, to meet demand, whether for precious red coral from the Mediterranean Sea, dyed Tibetan coral, or pink coral from the Pacific. However, the coral industry is bracing for an eventual worldwide shortage. The availability of new coral is dwindling as underwater supplies are depleted. Japan has already imposed strict quotas on coral divers, while Italian divers must dive deeper and deeper to get new red coral. Hopefully the coral sea farms will be a new source of coral in the future, just as pearl farms have become.

Special care is required for coral regardless of whether or not it is enhanced. A soft and porous gem, coral scratches and abrades easily and chlorine, alcohol, ammonia, nail polish remover, and other chemicals can damage it. Remove coral rings when washing and moisturizing your hands. Avoid exposing your coral to extreme temperatures. Your jeweler will tell you how to best care for coral.

And of course, Coral and Turquoise look stunning together when combined in jewelry.

Care of Turquoise and Coral Jewelry

Persons wearing Turquoise jewelry must avoid contact with soap and grease and harsh chemicals since this gemstone is softer than others. Storing turquoise jewelry with other harder gemstones may cause scratches against it. Exposure to high heat or perfumes and oils can affect the turquoise stones. Use warm sudsy water to clean your turquoise jewelry and wipe it dry with a soft cloth.

Coral Jewelry does not need high maintenance. The gem is fragile and more brittle than other gems. It measures only 3.5 on the Moh’s scale and the splendor of the coral will diminish if not taken care of. Like Pearls, Turquoise, some corals can be porous - these gems will get damaged if immersed in water for too long. Take care not to use too much water while wearing coral bracelets or rings. The water may also dull the polish of the coral making it look lackluster and unattractive. If you plan to go swimming, remove your Jewelry before diving in. The chlorine present in the water can cause the corals to spoil.

Store your Corals separately. Buy separate pouches for the Corals, so they do not get scratched. Other stones, which measure more than 5 on the Moh’s scale, can leave scratches on your coral.

As with Turquoise, harsh cosmetic products can also harm your corals. Use perfumes and sprays before wearing your jewelry as the chemicals present in sprays can damage the corals. Do not use good old soap and water or any other detergents to clean corals. If you plan to buy a professional cleaner, check if it is coral friendly. The best way to clean coral is to just wipe it with a soft damp cloth after you have worn it. If your corals do get scratched despite care, take it to the jeweler for a polish; it will look as good as new.

Find gemstone Bracelets, Earrings and Necklaces at Dizzygirl ~ Unique Artisan Jewelry.

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Some More Tips on Keywords

An important point about keywords is to give the search engines something to read. Look at your web pages and see if there is any text on the page. Text that the search engines can read is really important.

Tip #1

Replace images with real text. Text that is imbedded in images can’t be crawled. If the search engine can’t read it then it can’t be indexed. Is it real text or an image? Try selecting the text. If you can, then you’re OK. If you can’t then you’re probably dealing with and image.

Try highlighting the text in this picture. Are the words imbedded in the picture or are they free-standing text? Will this image get crawled by the search engines, or will it get ignored?

Use your Browser’s View Source command to look at the HTML for the page and see if you can find the words in the text. To do this, right click on a blank spot on the page. A menu will appear. Select “View Page Source” and this will show you all the coding for the page. Look for the words in question.

Tip #2

• Use more keywords if you have light content (meaning not a lot of text) and better still, use the right keywords in the right place.
• Use the most important keywords near the top of the page.
• Place keywords into Heading tags.<> keyword.
  
• Use bold and italic keywords. The search engines take note of this.
• Put keywords into bulleted lists. Search engines also notice this.
• Use keywords multiple times on a page, but don’t go crazy. You don’t want a whole page that says “dinnerware”. That’s considered keyword spamming and search engines will ignore you.
• When you create links, include keywords in the links whenever possible. So for example, “To find the best selection of Spode china pieces go to the Spode china pieces page.

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Turquoise and Coral Jewelry

There are several scales that are used by gemologists to determine hardness, durability or the scratch resistance of gemstones. The one that is most widely recognized is the Moh scale, which is really a table that indicates the scratch resistance of gemstones. A German minerologist by the name of Friedrich Moh developed a scale in 1822 to compare the scratch resistance of gemstones. It has become universally known as Moh's scale, with Diamond being a 10 or the most scratch resistant to Talc at a 1, which is the least scratch resistant.

I bring this up because most gemstones are enhanced in one way or another to increase durability, reduce scratch resistance or improve the look of the stone, or to even create a new look. For example, Carnelian can be Heat treated to produce that dark, rich reddish-orange color as found in some of the beads pictured below.

Generally, high scratch resistance is desirable for gemstones, and a Moh's hardness of 7 or higher is important. The principal reason is that a common cause of abrasion is sand, which is silica grit (quartz), and is commonly present in dust. Stones which are softer than quartz are not suitable for everyday use as facetted jewelry gemstones, particularly in rings. Some gems, such as Pearls, Coral, Turquoise, Lapis Lazuli, Amber, and Opal are quite soft, but are usually polished into cabochons or beads, rather than facetted, and therefore do not show scratches so easily. All these gemstones have been successfully used in jewelry for many centuries.

Most gemstones used in jewelry have been treated to improve their appearance. Treated gemstones can be a good choice when you know what you are buying and pay a price that reflects a stone's true quality. There are Industry Standards that indicate the type of enhancement and whether they are permanent or not. You’ll probably come across the phrase “enhanced as per Industry Standards”. So don’t be worried if the gemstones in your piece of jewelry have been enhanced. Sometimes enhancement can make a gemstone more valuable.

Two of the gemstones that I would like to discuss that are usually enhanced are Turquoise (a mineral gemstone) and Coral (an organic gemstone) which are consistently at the top of the list for the most popular gemstones and they are always in fashion. Another term that you will hear is Stabilization, or that a stone has been stabilized and it is usually used with stones that are less than a 7 of the Moh’s scale. This is especially true with Turquoise and Coral.

Turquoise

Turquoise is an opaque, light to dark blue or blue-green gem. It can also have a distinct yellow or limey green tone as seen in Chinese Turquoise. The finest color is an intense blue. Turquoise may contain narrow veins of other materials either isolated or as a network. They are usually black, brown, or yellowish-brown in color. Known as the matrix, these veins of color are sometimes in the form of an intricate pattern, called a spider web. The stone ranges from soft/somewhat porous to hard. The hard Turquoise is compact and wears well and is never enhanced and is found in the most expensive pieces of Turquoise jewelry.

Turquoise is mined all over the world, but a great deal comes from the West and Southwest United States. Natural turquoise is often too unstable to be used in jewelry so it is often subjected to a stabilizing treatment that soaks in various binders such as polymers to add strength. This is a common trade practice and in my opinion should not prevent a person from buying specimens or jewelry containing stabilized turquoise. Be aware of simulated turquoise, and so-called reconstituted turquoise.

Simulated Turquoise is generally the mineral Howelite which is dyed to emulate real Turquoise.

You can see from the pictures that Howelite has a similar matrix as Turquoise and once dyed it’s difficult to distinguish from natural turquoise if you’re not familiar with the stone. Personally, I purchase my stock from Dealers that mark very clearly whether a product has been enhanced and they follow the Industry Standard Guide faithfully. I never use dyed Howelite in my jewelry. When in doubt, ask!

Reconstituted turquoise is crushed up turquoise that has a binder applied, then reformed in to blocks which are cut in to gemstone shapes of carved in to figurines etc. The dealer should tell you if you are buying reconstituted turquoise, it should not cost as much as natural or natural stabilized items. This type of Turquoise can still make lovely pieces of jewelry at a much more affordable price. Even dyed Howelite can make some fun and fashionable jewelry…just know what you’re getting.

Special care is required for turquoise regardless of whether or not it is enhanced. A porous gem, turquoise can absorb anything it touches. Avoid contact with cosmetics, perfumes, skin oil, acids, and other chemicals. Avoid dehydrating it or exposing it to heat. Your jeweler will tell you how to best care for your natural gemstone.

I sell lovely Turquoise Bracelets, Earrings and Necklaces in my store Dizzygirl ~ Unique Artisan Jewelry . You can also find unique Turquoise pieces at Dizzygirl Jewelry.com.

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Occupied Japan

So you’ve heard of “Occupied Japan” items and wonder what that means. Well, I’m going to tell you!

After World War II ended, the Japanese economy was devastated. The Japanese needed a way to rebuild the economy and an agreement was struck with the occupying American forces that 50% of all goods being exported from Japan would be marked with “Occupied Japan” or “Made in Occupied Japan.”

This term “Occupied Japan” was insulting to the Japanese. Pieces may not have been marked as directed due to the stigma of this term. This is why you can sometimes find two items that are identical, and one will be marked “Occupied Japan” and the other won’t. The pieces marked with “Occupied Japan” or “Made in Occupied Japan” generally have more value than those that are not marked.

Part of what makes Occupied Japan items so collectible is that they were made during a very specific 7 year period, from 1945-1952. There were an almost endless variety of products produced during this period, from cloth items, like scarves or doilies, metal items, paper items, glass items and of course, porcelain and pottery.

Some of the pottery and porcelain items look very cheaply made. And some are absolutely gorgeous! Some look so much like pieces from other companies, like Dresden, that you couldn’t tell them apart by looking. Figurines are a popular collector item from the Occupied Japan period.

The only way to be certain an item is from the Occupied Japan period is if it is marked as such. Of course, some of these items are very valuable and fakes do occur, so you need to be careful. There are lots of fakes particularly of Black Americana items, so be especially careful with those. Some of the most collectible and valuable Occupied Japan pieces are Victorian figurines, Dresden copies and some of the Hummel look-alikes. Anything marked or signed by an artist is also usually a good investment. Prices for Occupied Japan items in general can range from a few dollars to several hundred or thousand dollars, depending on the rarity of the item, the quality and, for items like dinnerware sets, the completeness of the set.

I carry Occupied Japan Items in my store, Prairie Post Emporium.

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Landing Page Basics

Over on Wagglepop, unique landing pages has been a topic of conversation in recent weeks. Some of us feel daunted by the thought of creating a custom landing page. But you don't need to be a whiz at HTML or graphic design to create a customer-pleasing landing page.



Here are some tips from Dummies.com to help you create your own unique landing page.

1.Put your business name on your landing page, as well as a logo if you have one. Keep it simple!
2.Don't overload your page with graphics and animations. Use graphics consistently from page to page to help build your identity.
3.Use sales hooks like discounts, contests and special promotions. Keep it short. Forcing customers to scroll through pages of information isn't effective.
4.Use visual communication to get your message across. This includes the text you choose, the colors you use and the graphics (or lack thereof) you include. Try to tailor the visual appearance to your targeted buyer group.


You can read the article in it's entirety here: http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesArticle/id-139.html
The whole website is a great source of information, so be sure to bookmark it!

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HTML Resources

What exactly is HTML anyway? HTML is a computer language devised to allow website creation. These websites can then be viewed by anyone else connected to the Internet. It is relatively easy to learn, with the basics being accessible to most people in one sitting; and quite powerful in what it allows you to create. It is constantly undergoing revision and evolution to meet the demands and requirements of the growing Internet audience under the direction of the » W3C, the organization charged with designing and maintaining the language.

The definition of HTML is HyperText Markup Language.

•HyperText is the method by which you move around on the web— by clicking on special text called hyperlinks which bring you to the next page. The fact that it is hyper just means it is not linear — i.e. you can go to any place on the Internet whenever you want by clicking on links — there is no set order to do things in.

•Markup is what HTML tags do to the text inside them. They mark it as a certain type of text (italicised text, for example).

•HTML is a Language, as it has code-words and syntax like any other language.

Let’s start with the easy stuff. You can create an HTML page and not know anything about the codes used. To begin with you can use any word processing program, like Microsoft Word and create a page for you website. All you have to do is save the file as an HTML file, which is available in all the newer programs. You can work in a pre-existing site and use the wysiwyg editor which means “what you see is what you get.” You set up your page the same way you would in a document and the editor creates the HTML code in the background.

If you want to do the coding yourself, here are some useful links that explain HTML, give you codes for various features like text font and color and I’ve included and HTML reader so that you can test out your code before you put it into the website.

You will find this HTML Practice Board very useful. You can type out your script in Notepad or any other text editor and copy and paste it into the practice board. That way you’ll see if it works and if it doesn’t you can fix it before you go to the trouble to add it to your site. http://www.practiceboard.com/.

If you want to see what colors you can use and their codes then this site is extremely useful. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to get other color charts. http://www.brobstsystems.com/colors1.htm, http://www.isdntek.com/demo/internetcolors.htm.

This site will give you rainbow lettering. It does use a lot of code to produce the affect so use it where it will have the most impact. http://rainbow.arch.scriptmania.com/tools/rainbow_text/rainbow_text.html

These sites give you directions on how to actually code your script. Even though some of them say they’re site specific, you can use the coding anywhere. http://www.eobcards.com/tutorial3.htm, http://www.bulls2.com/indexb/bobstips2.html, http://werbach.com/barebones/barebones.html

The following sites are tutorials and other miscellaneous sites that have useful information. http://www.yourhtmlsource.com/, http://www.snapfiles.com/get/umarklite.html and http://cooltext.com/.


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Shipping to Canada Made Easy

Believe it or not, shipping to Canada is very easy. As a matter of fact, it’s just as easy as shipping in the US. You use the same weight categories. You use the same shipping categories. The only difference is that a Custom’s sticker is required. You do however have to go to the Post Office to ship items outside of the US. When you go the first time, ask the Postal Worker if you can have some extra Customs labels so when you go the next time, you can just drop the parcel off at the side counter. Most of the larger Postal Centers have a specific area designated for just such a purpose. You can also print the Customs labels on-line. Here’s the link to the appropriate USPS page for shipping outside of the US.

http://www.usps.com/business/international/welcome.htm

Easy Shipping Tips

You can use some of these tips for any of the shipping that you do.

• When filling out the Customs label, just use the actual value of the item. Do not include the shipping cost. Canadians are only allowed $20.00 duty-free before they may be assessed a brokerage fee and taxes. Any assessed fees are the responsibility of the buyer, not the seller.

• Avoid inflating the cost of the item. This will incur charges to your buyer that are not valid. This equals an unhappy buyer.

• Avoid marking the item as a Gift, even if your buyer asks you to. This is illegal and if it happens too often then the Seller is the one that has to bear any consequences.

• Send the item through USPS whenever possible. All the Courier Companies (Fedex, UPS, DHL) charge an outrageous brokerage fee to bring the item across the border, often costing Canadians $30-$50 in additional fees. This also does not make for a happy buyer.

• Use Airmail whenever possible. Shipping by Ground can take many weeks for an item to arrive. You can use Global Airmail Letter-post for items up to 4 lbs. This will keep the costs down for the buyer and insure a speedy delivery. And believe it or not, you can use boxes and still send it Letter-post. Just check for the maximum dimensions.

• When using Global Priority or Global Express envelopes place the item in a bubble envelope or wrap in bubble wrap first. The cardboard is very flimsy and will tear open if items are placed loosely inside. This is how the parcel looked when I received it. I was lucky that nothing was missing, but it was held together with an elastic.
  

• Always include a packing slip that shows exactly what the buyer has purchased.

• When shipping breakables it’s always best to double box items whenever possible. Pack the breakables carefully in a box and then float that box inside a larger one. Surround the smaller box with packing peanuts or crushed up wads of newspaper. Breakables packaged this way can survive two Postal Systems, Customs and an impromptu game of football.

• Look at how you assess your shipping fees. It’s absolutely reasonable to add a couple of extra dollars as a handling fee when shipping outside of the country. Just make sure the buyer knows this ahead of time…as in before they buy the item.

The Inevitable

Not all parcels coming into Canada will be inspected by Customs, but eventually it will happen. If the Customs label is filled out correctly it is rare that Canada Customs will open the package. They will just assess it for duty and taxes and continue it on through the mail. They will however open suspicious looking packages or open ones for a spot check. The inevitable part is that Customs, regardless of which country, do not repackage the item as carefully as you have. If you’ve double boxed your breakable items they are more likely to arrive intact. A packing slip placed as the last thing in the parcel may prevent the Customs Agent from opening the inner package.

More Resources

This is a link that will take you to a site that gives you excellent information on sending items to most countries worldwide. It also provides other links to informative sites.

http://www.columbia.edu/kermit/postal.html

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Search Engine Optimization

The concept of SEO is very simple. Number one: you want the search engines to find your site and index it so that it shows up on the Internet. Number two: you want to have your site show up at the beginning of the search returns, not the end. The big question is “How do I do this?” I will be posting some tips and tricks to improve your web site placement.

To begin. There are only 5 search directories that you need to submit your website to. Some cost money and others are free. The five directories are:

Google.com – it also feeds Yahoo and AOL

Yahoo.com – it’s worth paying the money for Yahoo if you can. Even though Google supplies Yahoo, it’s like putting your store in 2 categories instead of one. There is a link however for free submission to Yahoo as well.

MSN.com – It creates it’s own index.

Ask.com – This is a much smaller directory but it supplies info to sites like Ask Jeeves.

Open Directory Project – This is the meta directory of all the directories. It feeds all the other directories. Follow their instructions to the letter. You may or may not get indexed, but it’s worth trying.

Links

Google: www.google.com/addurl.html

Yahoo: http://search.yahoo.com/info/submit.html

MSN: http://search.msn.com/docs/submit.aspx

ODP: www.dmoz.org

How to Tell if You’ve Been Indexed

I’ll give the instructions on how to do this without the Google toolbar.
It’s very easy. Go to Google.com and type in site:domain.com. You just put your domain name after site. You do not use the www for this. It will show you immediately if you’ve been indexed and how many pages that have been indexed. You can use the same format for MSN and Yahoo. You don’t have to worry about Ask.com because it’s fed from Google.

Tips

Search-bots, the tools used to examine the website, cannot see or read javascript. They cannot read or crawl pictures and they don’t like flash. They only read content.

To get the search-bots to crawl all your web site pages and index them you can do a couple of simple things.

One – Create more text links throughout the site. Many web sites have a main navigation structure and then duplicate the structure by using simple text links at the bottom of the page. You should do the same. Example: Find lots of mystery, fiction, non-fiction and romance books at BlueRidge Meadows. This should appear at the bottom of your description on all your pages in your wagglepop store. If you have your own website you can insert this at the bottom of every page.

Two – Add a sitemap page to your site. This page contains the links to most or all of your pages on your website. Of course you want to link to the sitemap page from those little links at the bottom of your homepage. Check back here to learn about adding a sitemap to your site.

Picking good Keywords

Getting search engines to recognize and index your website can be a problem. You need to know what search terms or keywords people are using. Go to this site and type in a keyword you think people might be using. http://searchmarketing.yahoo.com/rc/srch/. The tool returns a list of keywords, showing you how often that term and related terms are used by people searching on Yahoo! and partner sites. There will be more on Keywords later.

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