General Article

Nike Dunks – Timeless in Their Appeal

Fans of Nike Dunk have a tough task at hand. They will have to debate long hours to arrive at one style of Nike Dunk that is the most popular. That is because this honor cannot go to a single style of Nike Dunks and there will be many vying for the top spot. Over the years, Nike has consistently been coming out with fresh designs and styles, each rivaling the other in terms of the material, theme and utility. These styles have always impressed the casual purchasers as well as the die hard Nike fans. As an instance, you can recall that the Denim Nike Dunk, had only denim as its main material, but was something that was unique at that point in time and was not seen on any other shoe.

Another example is the Dunk Low Pro SB Supreme Cement style, which took after the Air Jordan styling and was still a huge hit. The Nike Heineken Dunks, which used the color of the Heineken beer brand as an inspiration is yet another example of how innovative and different Nike has tried to be in bringing new styles and colors into the market.

The above examples of Dunks are sure to command a premium even today and are often discussed at sneaker forums. Though some styles were released many years back and in limited quantities at that time, die hard collectors will make a beeline for them even today and are constantly on the look out for such an opportunity. This only goes to show the immense popularity these brands still enjoy.

One more style that was released in very few numbers and is sure to cause a sensation if released again was the Nike SB What the Dunk style. Though it was a strange combination of many styles such as the Hemps, the Supreme His, the Avengers and the Denims among many others, it was a hit mainly due to the limited pairs released.

Nike has a timeless winner in its Dunks and the fact that they are comfortable and durable are the main attributes that has given them an exalted place in the world of sneakers. With so many releases every year, it is indeed difficult to choose the best and everybody will have their own favorite based on the color scheme and theme that they have liked and to that extent, the question is irrelevant. Suffice to say that Nike Dunks will always be popular and are timeless in their appeal.…

How to Do Shopping for Christmas Gifts for Men

When Christmas draws near, it is now time for you to get your pens and papers out to make a gift list for the people around you. After all, Christmas is all about giving, right? Just like kids, men also love receiving gifts but when it comes to Christmas shopping for the gifts that you are going to give to the little boys, dudes, guys, and men, it can be a bit of a challenge.

Tips for Buying Christmas Gifts for Men

Scouring the different stores and catalogs for the perfect present for men can be a difficult task. You can spend long hours just looking not just for the right one, but the best gift that you are capable of giving.

Who are you going to give it to? The first tip is to answer this question. The gifts that you are going to choose will first depend on who the guy is and of course, your relationship with him. Is he your father? Your brother? Your friend? Your Cousin? Your boyfriend? No matter who it is, you need to first base your choice on this.

Make the gifts extra special. For example, if you are going to look for Christmas presents for boyfriend, you can make a personalized gift that he can use like a customized shirt. Of course, you have to remember that he is a guy so it would probably be best to stay away from all the mushy stuff.

Keep in mind the age of the person you are giving it to. Christmas gifts for men should be age appropriate. For instance, the best presents for kids would be toys and game boxes and for teenagers to young men, you can give out gadgets.

Find out his personality, likes, and interests. For instance, if the guy is a techie, you can look for gadgets. If his hobby is reading, you can buy him a book, a book pillow, or a book light. The point is to give a gift that would fit his wants and needs.

If you do not know what he really wants, you can play it safe. Give Christmas gifts for men that they like in general such as watches, ties, handkerchiefs, shirts, or gadgets. These are some of the things that they generally appreciate.

Remember that most, if not all, men are very practical. The presents that you are going to give should be useful.

If you are going to give clothes, make sure to get the right size. The same goes with shoes. Also, the clothes and shoes should fit the style of the one you are going to give it to.

If he is someone who is close to you, try to make an inventory of the things that he owns.

Where to Shop for Christmas Gifts for Men?

For great gift ideas, you can search the internet. There are a lot of online stores that also offer great deals …

Finding The Best Shopping Cart for Your Online Store

The choice of an ecommerce service that you use in your online business can greatly contribute to your success or failure. An online shopping cart is the software that powers the buying and checkout process for a retail website.

Having an efficient payment processing system can help tilt the balance in your favor. It’s imperative that you get the best shopping cart when running your online business. Whether it’s a small store or a virtual shopping mall, getting an e-commerce solution that will help deliver various services is central to your website. Basic shopping cart software provides support for inventory management and credit card processing. With the right online ecommerce hosting provider, you can achieve more while still having affordable price plans to choose from.

With a quality ecommerce provider, you are in a position to create and manage every aspect of your website. These may include graphic banners to announce sales or featured items, newsletters to keep your customers informed on product updates, and product layouts that are completely customizable. You have to ability to create promotions and coupons to generate more sales. Don’t know how to design web pages? No problem, many services today provide several professionally created templates that will impress your visitors.

User-friendly ecommerce services today make your website very easy to navigate for your visitors and customers. Don’t underestimate the benefits of having a reliable shopping cart to power your business.

Online businesses can’t survive without traffic, hence making it vital that you optimize your site very well. Your cart provider should provide a platform that is search engine friendly to increase natural, organic traffic to your website. They should also provide technical support with quick and knowledgeable support staff.

Features, support and price should be your main considerations when trying to find the best shopping cart service. Yahoo Stores and Prostores are worth checking into. Another one of the top providers is from Big Commerce. They were chosen as the best service for 2010 by a leading online comparison company.…

Arien O’Connell Did Not Win the Nike Women’s Marathon in 2008

Arien O’Connell undeniably ran the fastest time at the Nike Women’s Marathon back in 2008. She had a tremendous race and she ran a 12 minute PR, and now she also has a great story to tell her friends.

What Arien did not do, however, was win the race. Just because she ran 11 minutes faster than her next closest competitor, she was not the first woman to cross the finish line. The actual winner of the marathon was Nora Colligan.

Should there have been a 20 minute head start for the “elite” women? Probably not. Should some of those “elite” women have signed up as elites? Probably not. Should Arien have signed up as an elite? Questionable.

The fact remains, however, that there was an elite field, that for whatever reason did have a 20 minute head start, and the rules pertain to the first person to cross the line. Nora crossed it 9 minutes before Arien did.

Nike and the city of San Francisco have thankfully used this fiasco to improve the management of their race in the following years, and they did make good by offering Arien a complementary first place designation along with the prizes that come with first. Thankfully, they did not take the win away from Nora since she was in fact the one that won the race.

The elite start is a mainstay of large marathons, usually to allow the women a chance to shine and to make it easy for media vehicles to follow them so that they do not get lost in the crowd. However, the Nike race failed to draw an actual elite group of women to race, otherwise they wouldn’t have been beaten to the line despite a 20 minute head start.

A quick search on a few of the women in the elite field returns recent marathon times ranging from low to high 3 hour races. With nothing to go on other than an elite designation, Arien is nowhere close to being an elite runner, nor are most of the women that started in the elite corral.

To get around this problem, Nike finally acknowledged that the race is predominantly run by women with only 15 men in the top 50 finishers, and they did away with an elite start 20 minutes ahead of the rest of the field and just let them race it out the normal way.…

Discover Discount Online Stores for Grocery Shopping

Why more and more people are endorsing the idea of shopping on the internet for even the smallest of their daily needs? It’s the ease and convenience internet shopping has provided that has made it an easy and affordable medium to shop for daily household accessories of all kinds. No matter if you are thinking of giving your wardrobe a brand new look or want to buy basic grocery items for your kitchen, you can purchase everything off the internet with just a single click. Shopping for bigger items like furniture or electronics was considered to be a nuisance because one has to actually make a full-length plan to visit various malls and stores before making a purchase. Now, you can order everything online and can also obtain the appropriate discounts against all your orders to get them securely delivered at your doorstep. Such are the joys internet shopping has brought into our lives to make them more comfortable and easy for us.

The advantages of buying daily grocery items on the internet have made it a popular idea among everyone over the last few years. Gone are the days when internet shopping was reserved to buying electronics, books and clothing accessories of all kinds. As the world has progressed into a digital era, now buying food and confectionery items online has become a preferable idea for many of us. Since grocery accessories are something that one has to buy on almost every alternate week and no one has the time to actually adopt this troublesome activity of visiting grocery shops owing to tight work deadlines and daily schedules. Therefore, for hassle free shopping for necessary items required for your kitchen, people prefer ordering them on the internet. This not only saves ample amount of time but by grabbing the right discount codes and coupons from the right online stores can actually give the buyer a fantastic chance of get massive savings on all of his purchases.

There are lots of online retail shops and price comparison websites displaying a wide range of print coupons and discount codes for the convenience of their customers. One of the benefits of buying food items on the internet is that you can actually track down specific retail stores which are specialized in offering the most needed confectioneries and grocery products like organic food items, seasonal products, ethnic food products, exclusive recipes and diet supplements of all kinds etc. So, you don’t have to worry about finding the appropriate online shop for your daily grocery shopping. Just get online today and search for online stores UK offering you multiple money-saving options to spend less and save more.

One of the major concerns which many E shoppers come across while shopping for daily home and kitchen accessories is the opportunity to get their purchased products delivered securely at their doorsteps in less time. Since grocery products like milk, meat, vegetables etc come with a limited period of time, …

Giving With Joy (Not Out of Duty)

I figured it out! I learned (via the hard, experiential way) how to give gifts from the heart and always feel good about it.

The key is to give when you feel like giving, and only within your means. Sounds pretty simple, but we typically don’t follow this at the holidays (or other gift-giving occasions).

Most folks either get really inspired and give more than they can afford to, only to regret it later when the credit card bills come due in the new year…. OR they give out of obligation, trying to find something inexpensive that will pass as acceptable (or something fitting for that uncle who is so difficult to buy for).

Neither method proves satisfactory to you, the gift-giver, and I would hazard a guess, to the gift recipient either. For if someone receives an over-the-top expensive gift from a giver whom they know can’t afford it, then the recipient feels badly. On the other hand, if the recipient opens a gift, only to see it is something that doesn’t really fit, or isn’t in line with their lifestyle or personality, then they don’t truly feel “gifted” afterall.

So the simple way to resolve this age-old dilemma is to create a gift-giving budget (a range that you feel comfortable spending within), and stick to it. Don’t let emotions take you beyond that price range. Be creative and discover what amazing gift you can find within your budgeted range. (Hint: it helps if you plan ahead and take some time to research options. Waiting till the last minute makes this step challenging.)

The second part of this method is to only give when your heart is truly “in it”. So if you aren’t in the mood, don’t go gift shopping. If you really don’t want to buy yet another soap-on-a-rope for Uncle Ted, then don’t. Either find something you’re inspired to give him, or make him a beautiful handmade card (and don’t spend money on a gift).

And finally, the third step is to let go of all expectations around the gift. In other words, don’t expect a thank you note, don’t expect them to “ooh” and “aah” when they open your gift, don’t expect it to be their favorite gift. Just give with an open heart, because you want to. And let go of any expectation about the outcome of the gift-giving….

These three steps might feel uncomfortable at first, but after a while, this will become second nature to you. You’ll be amazed at how wonderful you feel about gift-giving (before, during and after).

By following these principles, you will shift the entire gift-giving experience to one of joy and isn’t that what it’s all about?…

Self Prospecting: Is It a Fairy Tale or Reality? You Decide!

Once upon a time, in a land far far away, there lived a new home sales princess who worked for a big builder in a fairy tale new home community. The beautiful sales princess was always busy! Traffic to her new home community magically appeared each and every day! She wrote sales contracts weekly! All was well in New Homebuilder Land, that is, until the wicked witch appeared!

The wicked witch decided to cast an evil spell on New Homebuilder Land! All of a sudden the traffic that used to flow freely into the new home community dried up like a raisin in the sun! Time stood still! The beautiful new home princess was confused and sad! She cried to her fairy godmother every night begging her to destroy the witch and restore her happy life.

The fairy godmother (being the wise woman that she was) suggested to the princess that she come up with a plan of her own to generate the traffic that she had become so accustomed to. (Gotta love a sales oriented fairy godmother!)

The sales princess was not sure what to do! She tried to get Prince Charming to help her out, but he too was having his own traffic problems in New Homebuilder Land! Alas, our sales princess sat down with her fairy godmother and together they came up with her own magical spell to restore the abundance of visitors to her sales office. The word ‘self prospecting’ was officially invented!

Our princess combined all the following elements to create her magical self prospecting spell:

1. Develop relationships with the top realtors in the land

2. Ask for referrals from previous clients

3. Form partnerships with local businesses, friends and family

4. Plan community events and parties

5. Use Social Media/Networking to promote the community

6. Pick up the phone and call people!

The fairy godmother was very proud of her sales princess for taking the initiative to increase traffic and sales into her new home community. So proud in fact that she too created another plan to support the princess in her endeavors. She added marketing and advertising, sales training and corporate kingdom support to assist not only the princess, but Prince Charming too and all the other new homes sales people that lived in the land.

Everyone’s joint efforts paid off! Traffic returned to the land, sales increased and our sales princess was busy!

And they all lived happily ever after. The end!

Moral of the story: To be successful in new home sales, you must know how to self prospect! Self sales prospecting done properly can have a huge impact on your sales revenue! It doesn’t take a great deal of time to do, and it doesn’t require a magical spell. But, it does require that you have a solid plan in place and that you schedule the time to do it. Many sales people are hesitant to self prospect …

Tricks for Smart Wedding Dress Shopping on a Budget

Your wedding day is one you may have been thinking about since you were a young girl paging through your mother’s wedding album. And part of that dream – a big part for most women – is the gown you wear on your big day. Even if you weren’t the type to playact weddings with your brother’s friends, your pets and your dolls, you may still find yourself daydreaming about your dress once that ring has encircled your finger. And generally speaking, nowhere in that dream is the thought that you had to settle for a gown simply because you couldn’t afford to really splurge. So here are some tricks for smart wedding dress shopping on a budget – to get you into the gown that brings you to happy tears without causing your credit card to weep in protest.

It’s never too early to start looking!

In fact, the sooner you find the gown, the better. You may be hesitant to start ‘too early,’ especially if you’re trying to lose weight or get into a more trim shape for your wedding, but the truth is that you should have your gown long before you arrive at your goal weight. That’s what fittings and tucks are for, after all.

• Start shopping for your dress 8 to 10 months prior to your wedding date – earlier if you’d like.

• You have plenty of time, so don’t rush the process – that’s why you start so early.

• Fittings should usually start 6 to 8 weeks before the big day, so you should be at or close to your goal weight to reduce the fittings and adjustments required.

By starting so early, even if it takes you 2 months to find the perfect dress in your price range, you’re still not rushed into either paying too much for a dress you love, or settling on a dress that is ‘okay,’ but whose main selling point is that it fits within your budget.

That’s right, you need to budget your dress before you start looking.

Although no bride wants to be restricted by price in their search for the dress, you’ll need to be realistic. Everyone knows that the number one fight couples encounter, no matter how long they’ve been together, is money. Add to that the stress of the entire wedding, and those arguments can be exponentially more explosive. Set your budget prior to looking for dresses, so as to avoid being seduced into raising your budgeted limit higher than you can reasonably afford.

With a more restricted budget, consider these price-shaving ideas:

• Instead of going for a popular, avant-garde designer, see if you can find a lesser-known designer whose style you adore.

• Consider opting for a white, or ivory, bridesmaid’s dress or formal gown in place of a bridal gown – the price difference can be astounding, and with the infinite variety of BM gowns, your options are …

Online Shopping and How to Save Money Online and Get Cash Back

Have you ever met anyone who does not want to save money? I don’t think I know anybody who does not want to spend less or save more or get some cash back. I know a lot of people from a lot of different walks of life and from different incomes and they all want to save money. There are a lot of things we can all do in our day to day activities to save a little bit here and there and in the end it all can add up to a lot of money saved. It may just be a matter of analyzing your habits and making a few small changes. It is amazing how much you can save or how much you can get back when you take the right approach. Here are a few ideas to help you save money online.

One other thing that most everybody these days has in common is online shopping. We all spend our time on the internet, some more than others. It is just easier a lot of times to get what you want and have it shipped right to your door. But do you pay for that convenience? Some online stores will add additional “convenience” fees to your order to process it online. This is not near as common however as the discount codes, coupon codes and even cash back rebates being offered to get you to buy from them. Every business online now knows that they need to offer an incentive if they want to keep their share of business. If you play your cards right you can save much more buy shopping online and having that special item shipped right to your door.

Here are a few tips that you should keep in mind all the time:

Search for a code before you check out. It is often worth the short time it will take you to go find a code to save you a little green.

Sign up for a cash back program like Ebates. With the cash back program you will get a rebate for all your online shopping. Remember, these businesses want your business and they are going to do all they can to get it, even if that means they give you a discount and give you some cash back.

Save your coupons. When you shop at the store you often take coupons with you so why not save them for online shopping as well? often the codes you find can be used over and over again.

Stay up to date. get a newsletter or update email from some of the coupon sites so you have the reminders of sale items. it also helps you to remember to use the services and the codes when you shop.

You can literally save hundreds of dollars or more depending on your shopping habits of course. It only takes a few minutes to find …

Promoting Your Online Shopping Cart Via Teleseminars

Teleseminars are perhaps one of the easier ways you can connect with other people and begin to build a reputation for you and your company. As people learn about the product or services that you offer, they will be able to determine if you are offering them something that they can use. This in turn can prove to be beneficial in cases where you might have a new product or service to promote.

Here are some important things to keep in mind when you are promoting your online shopping cart via teleseminars.

1. Keep everything clear and concise. This will help those who might have trouble following when they watch you. Avoid moving around too much and be sure you speak directly into the cameras that are recording.

2. Provide useful information. Make sure that your customers are having an actual problem solved by you. It should seem like you are genuinely trying to help them, rather than simply selling a product. This means you keep everything direct and while you can suggest a product, don’t stress it.

3. Don’t make false promises. This means that if your viewers are looking for a specific solution, you don’t swear that a product will fix it. Instead, you might suggest a solution that has worked for you and let them know that everyone’s experience may be different.

4. Stay focused on your content. Avoid jumping around too much and ensure that you have a clear path to follow from start to finish. This helps to make logical sense and you avoid confusion. When possible, send out or post an outline or agenda before the event so that people have this to follow and use for note-taking. Make sure to brand it, like have your URL in the header and footer, as well as a copyright mark.

5. Make sure you look your best. This may be the first impression people have of you. Make sure you look professional and avoid looking like you just woke up.

By following tips you will find that you are able to successfully increase your shopping cart sales. For more help, find other helpful articles as well as multimedia on this topic at YouTube and in podcasts. Then dig in and give your marketing a boost with teleseminars. Ask for feedback, and improve them as you go along, discussing various products in your ecommerce site. It’s all about long term growth.…