Branding - More Than Just a Statement - A Memory ScarWritten by Dave Jones
Conjure up in your mind broad rolling meadows with runs of cattle or stock of some type, all discriminate by virtue of a registered brand. That's a most common and accepted understanding of branding.You have just now used your mind to develop a picture that promises easy recall. You may not yet be aware but there's always a new secret marketing aid being developed and made available ... nearly every day of week. I'd be one of many that could point out who target group is for all of these hidden treasures and industrious salespeople. But if you're reading this, then take a bow and a large step forward! You are in fact "demand" component of supply that's being generated. Now what happens when you also join ranks of industrious? It doesn't take a whole deal of thinking to recognize that you can easily get lost in traffic, especially if you are starting up a business of your own. Being known as an absolute is a very real way of defeating some of that traffic; not only way but a very effective one. Your general copy writing and headline creation tactics certainly help cause but in a saturated market environment you need to embrace every advantage. Exactly what then, can you do, to be noticed? Question well asked and answer ..... consider branding yourself. The reason branding works is that it gives individuality to value you provide to those that come to your site. If they don't come to your site then its through your e-mails, e-zines, blogs and advertisements. It makes folk recall your Site and perhaps even prompts them to bookmark. Do it right and they might even opt to scan for forthcoming product that carries your brand name. You'll be far more noticeable if you can create something that settles on someone's mind. Catch imagination of your readers, use unique or quirky themes and make that difference that magnetizes your audience. By way of example, let me relate a branding experience using a quick story.... tangent if you will. There's a huge red rock located in middle of Australia that was at one time known as Ayers Rock. More recently it has adopted term Uluru.
| | BUDGETING YOUR LOG HOME: Creating a checklistWritten by Mercedes Hayes
If you've read my first article, BUDGETING YOUR LOG HOME: Where do you start?, you've got a very basic overview of process. However, there are still a number of questions I'd like to address. Again, many of these questions will come up if you build any custom home, but I'd venture to guess log home owners find themselves deeper in decision-making process than someone dealing with a custom builder. After all, differences become apparent immediately as owners have to find their own manufacturer.Unless you have a pocket full of cash, you're going to have to follow construction loan mindset throughout budgeting process. I plan to devote a whole article to construction loan, but this pursuit will serve as a preliminary step before going to bank. The biggest part of your budget will be purchase of land. With today's new construction market - especially in New Jersey - raw land constitutes 30%-40% of total project (of course, in other states land won't be so much but your overall costs will be less, too). It helps to purchase land first so you know how much money you're going to have left over. Then you need to figure out how much to set aside for your excavation, your driveway, and your septic system. Before you can get to this number, it helps to hire a civil engineer to draw up a survey and plot plan (you'll need survey for mortgage company anyway). This will cost you a few hundred dollars. The plot plan will diagram where house will go (and footprint of house), length of driveway, where septic and well will go. With this document, you can go to excavator for a quote. Since most log homes tend to be built in rural areas, you will probably have to install your own septic and well. The excavator who does your driveway will most likely be one who will dig your septic. The well driller will probably be a different company. These are both "wild cards", because cost of septic will depend on how well land percs (short for percolate), and you don't know how deep your well will go. Once again, engineer will design a septic plan which will have to be approved by county (in most states). The cost of your septic could range anywhere from $10,000 - $30,000. If you are setting house way back from road, you must budget for that extra-long driveway. And if your lot is heavily wooded, you will have to pay extra for tree removal; remember that you need to clear plenty of space to accommodate both house and a large area around house for machinery to maneuver. You also have to consider a space to put logs after delivery. Once location and footprint of house is determined, you may need to use a different contractor for foundation. Foundations are not provided by log home manufacturer (with rare exceptions). There are several ways to go: you can build on a slab, a crawl space, or a full basement. You can use a block foundation, a precast foundation, a poured concrete foundation (these are main choices). Poured concrete is most expensive. These days, many people choose precast foundations for log homes, because they are so accurate and don't require a footer. If you go this route, you'll have to hire a mason to pour floor after precast foundation is erected. Remember that if you choose to build on a slab, you're going to have problems routing your wiring, because this is normally done from basement.
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