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Our article on suitable alternatives for ingredients when cooking evoked a great response from readers. Many of you requested more information on this topic. Starting from today's issue, we will dedicate a section to 'Ingredient Substitutions' where we will feature alternative ingredients for popular ingredients, so that you know better next time you run out of something when cooking. And if you know of a substitute, do send it to us at feedback@dotcomwomen.com. It will be published in this ezine with full acknowledgement.

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LET'S TALK BUSINESS

PR Tools That Are Good For Online Business

PR is good for business, especially good PR! Everyone knows that. Is this true for PR online? Very much so true, especially when a website uses appropriate PR for its attentive audience.

By it very nature, a website is in many ways a PR campaign; it spreads the word about your products and services and quickly puts this news before visitors. Some experts claim that the potential of online PR is better than many conventional routes. When you stop to think about it, there is no good reason to go online unless your presence increases your visibility and gets you noticed in a positive manner that increases your revenue.

Today's online PR tools are highly effective at drawing the right attention. Below are some tools that not only get your message out to the right audience but also increase your market range.

1. Newsgroups and blogs.
Many visitors want to hear the latest on what's happening in your business and related industry. By opening a forum that allows constructive discussions, you can position yourself as a guru or expert.

2. Online Yellow Pages and Organizations.
Visitors many times want to know what organizations you belong to. So, become a member of many related groups since this increases your integrity and makes your capabilities more legitimate in the visitor's eye. List yourself in these online directories so people can easily find you. Inside directories like the Yellow Page, offer lots of information about your business such as your website and keywords or phrases that say a lot about your specialties. Some directories to start out with are www.Yearbook.com and www.PRWeb.com.

3. Press releases and special features.
Inside relevant online publications, submit press releases with special angles about your website product or service. As you build relationships with these online publications, submit monthly features about your area of expertise. Always include your website somewhere in the press release or at the end of the article so readers can follow up or get more information with you. If this seems too time consuming, online PR firms and services sometimes offer, for a fee, to submit your press releases to as many as 50 related media sources for you.

4. E-zines and newsletters.
Many businesses are spreading their own PR through personal e-zines, where visitors subscribe to get related information about your products, services or industry. Many of these e-zines offer course material that spread good word about your knowledge.

The top priority behind using PR tools on the Internet is to attract business to your website. Rather than throwing away valuable time and money in unsuccessful campaigns, regularly evaluate your PR efforts and reshape or toss the ones that don't work in your favor. Don't measure all PR by profits; the purpose of some PR is to increase your image and confirm loyal relationships. Still, every online PR effort should in the end increase your revenue.

When thinking about your PR campaigns on the Internet, keep a few tips in mind:

- Since the Internet is seen globally, use extremely clear communication.
- Only immediate information is considered newsworthy.
- Keep download time to a minimum and feedback professional since visitors expect this level of interaction.
- Even though Internet PR costs aren't as high as PR in print, the time involved to create great Internet PR will be just as consuming.


Copyright 2005 Riki Trafford. All rights reserved.
 

About the Author:

Riki Trafford is the owner of Direct MO Marketing which offers low cost keyword-targetted web traffic. For comments and questions visit his web site: http://www.1dmom.com/

RECIPE

Summer Fruit Brule

Ingredients:

110g blackcurrants
560g soft fruits (including one or more of the following: raspberries redcurrants loganberries or blackberries)
110g caster sugar
225g whipping cream
225g plain yogurt
175g demerara sugar

Directions:

You will need a round or oval shallow heatproof dish approx. 23cm across by 5cm deep.
First pick over the fruit and place it in a large saucepan or flameproof casserole.
Sprinkle it with caster sugar and then put the pan over a medium heat for about 35 minutes only until the sugar melts and the juice begins to run.
Now place the fruit in the serving dish and allow it to get quite cold.
After that whip the cream till thick and then fold it into the yoghurt and spread this mixture all over the fruit taking it right up to the edges of the dish to seal the fruit underneath.
You can then leave it in the refrigerator covered in clingfilm.
About 2 hours before you want to serve it spread the surface thickly with the demerara sugar then pre heat the grill to its highest setting and when you are sure it is really hot flash the dish underneath until all the sugar is brown and bubbling.
Now leave it to cool and pop it back in the refrigerator where the sugar will form a crusty surface

Serves 6

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