Think of an effectively written Press Release as being complimentary Advertising! Any article written about your product, company, event, or promotion, and published by an independent third party, will almost certainly deliver a sense of credibility and an implied endorsement that PAID advertisements just can't bring.

Keep your release short and informative. It should contain no more than 500 words and no more than two pages. Be sure to include your contact information. Write a release that includes contact name, company name, full address, phone number, email address, and Web site URL. The contact name should be someone who's available and capable of answering questions.

A Press Release is simply most powerful form of advertising there is!

When you can't turn on your computer to get work done, you can still grab a good old-fashioned pen and legal pad and get more work done in peace and quiet without phones, fax or email to distract you than you could ever get done when things get back to "normal."

It struck me last night as I struggled to get my high- speed Internet connection going again that I was much more stressed over getting a stupid piece of hardware to function than I was over driving 50+ miles to find gas just two days before!

In fact, looking back, I was more proud of fact that on Saturday I found what was probably last cold six pack of beer in all of Southeastern Virginia than I was about my last successful online product launch!

And after spending many days and nights in dark, I realized that Internet represents ultimate convenience, but it's also ultimate business risk because so much can happen to shut Internet down or prevent you from accessing it.

If recent events taught me anything, they taught me these three truths about life:

1. Life is fragile and valuable - don't take it for granted.

2. Nothing is more important than safety and well- being of family and friends. Sometimes it takes a calamity to remind us.

3. Anyone who depends on Internet for their entire livelihood should seek to diversify how they make their money - just in case Internet disappears one day when you least expect it!