The significant challenges that we face today cannot be resolved by the same level of thinking that created them.

Well, here we are - six days into 2004 already. I'm reminded of earlier days. When we were teens, we couldn't wait to be older. And now that we are, the days seem to slip by more quickly each year, don't they?

I'd like to welcome our new readers and wish you all a prosperous new year. We're glad you chose to join us. Feel free to comment in the sections below or contact me directly if you need any assistance.

My MailWasher report for this past week shows that 8,073 messages were sent to me and only about 145 of them were items I requested. If you've been following these reports, it seems the spam trying to get into my Inbox has been increasing by about 1,000 messages per week. I don't know about you, but I'd never get any work done if I had to deal with this garbage on my own.

Personally, I'm not sure just how effective the new CAN-SPAM act will be towards stopping this barrage of spam. It may slow down eventually but now you are likely to start experiencing less than desirable incidents as you surf.

If you have any doubt, take a few moments to read Curiosity can be costly ... Story of a Hijack. Jim is an experienced individual who knows his way around computers. While following a link in a search he did in Google, his nightmare began. Safe internet surfing may also become a thing of the past.

Today's Feature is The Year In Review by Bob Osgoodby. Bob is a marketer with many years experience behind him and in The Year In Review he shares his impressions of this past year as well as a brief glimpse of what we can look forward to in 2004.

Technologies such as weblogs have become favored by many by virtue of their being able to reach out to their readers on a regular basis without worrying about email as their method of delivery.

And that's why I've been such a big advocate of Quikonnex. My readers can choose the channel(s) they want to follow and I don't have to worry about list maintenance at this time. It's good for the subscriber and it's been great for me as a publisher.

And if you haven't heard it yet, Jim and Carolyn went the extra mile in developing QuikView for our subscribers who still don't quite grasp the concept of aggregators and news readers. Now you can choose the QuikView option to view all your favorite channels from the convenience of your browser. Oh yes, it's cross-brower and cross-platform friendly. But that's not all it can do. You'll be able to use it as a bookmark manager as well. I can't wait for the surprise release they have in store for us later today. Something new has been brewing so stay tuned. I'll let you know as soon as I do.

Today's Special Feature is Rejuvenating Your Affiliate Checks And Reducing Your Advertising Budget! The author, Ewen Chia, provides an interesting anthology about earning with affiliate programs while providing useful information to help you boost your earnings.

Well - grab your cup of coffee and let's get on with the rest of today's issue of KIT. Happy New Year to you all.

Have a great day and keep on smiling.

Lois M. Jeary
Publisher, KIT
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The Year In Review
by Bob Osgoodby

The Christmas gifts that were wrapped with such care are all gone, and a New Year is here. No, this will not be an anthology of events, but rather some impressions.

The year started off with the alarmists, who had predicted their usual dire results for online businesses. At year end however, putting their tails between their legs, they went slinking off into the twilight zone. This was the best year ever for online commerce, and it can only get better.

The fear of terror attacks continued making headlines on a daily basis. Some people cancelled vacations and avoided large gatherings, or took other protective measures. The majority of people however went about their daily business with an almost blasé attitude.

We saw MLMs come and go, but what else is new. This happens all the time and last year was no exception. With "visions of sugar plums" the uninitiated plunked down their hard earned bucks, and signed up in droves, only to find that if they wanted to succeed, they had to work. When they didn't earn their million the first month, while sitting in front of the TV eating bonbons or guzzling beer, they lost heart.

The dot.coms rebounded with a flourish. They had learned their lesson the hard way and avoided the pitfalls which took so many down a few years ago. They finally realized that most people are not idiots, and you can't sell an overpriced item - plus shipping and handling - just because it is on the web.

Some continued to believe the propaganda that "Job" was a dirty word and fell into the 40-40-40 trap - work 40 hours a week for 40 years and retire at 40 percent of your pay. They scraped up a hundred bucks or so, and purchased "automatic submission" software that sent their ads to all the major web sites and ezines that accept free ads. Web site owners and publishers quickly recognized this, and filtered all their emails into the delete bucket. The only people who made any money here were those selling the software.

Others purchased mailing lists that contained millions of email addresses, only to find that most were returned as undeliverable. Those that were valid, resulted in getting their Internet account canceled for spamming – sending unsolicited commercial email.

The pundits continued to suggest that anyone can publish an online newsletter or ezine. What they didn't say is that you have to be at least semi-literate to do so. There have been many startups, and just as many who found that publishing is work - there's that dirty word again. Some even gave away free ads in their publication only to find that they were concentrating on the wrong thing. There is a world of difference between "readers" and "subscribers". Readers want content, not just a bunch of ads with an occasional out of date article pulled off the web.

Investors have wised up, and the high tech stocks, which took a beating, are on the rebound. The market which shapes all our lives, like life in general, will have its ups and downs. There will be winners and there will be losers, but isn't it like that all the time.

The scamsters did flourish. With new "fresh from the farm" millions arriving on the web, P.T. Barnum would have had a field day. "A sucker is born every minute" couldn't be truer. Funny thing is that most of the scams were simply reworked versions of ones that have been around for years. What was new, is that the web provided access to these uninformed, whose greed outweighed their common sense.

There are currently over a million pornographic sites on the Web, and growing. Despite the hue and cry of the legislators, and attempts by the ISPs to block them, their filth continues to flood our inbox. They are publicly denounced but remain profitable. Is there a double standard here?

Spam has increased to the point that email has become almost unusable. Spam accounted for approximately half of all the email traffic on the web. Some ISPs have become so obsessed, almost to the point of fanaticism, in trying to protect their subscribers from this, that they are blocking legitimate email because it violates one of their many rules.

Many States passed laws banning spam, and effective the first of the year, the Federal Anti-Spam Bill was enacted. Given a “maturation period” the federal law should work if it is enforced and hopefully, the ISPs will stop blocking legitimate email.

My impression is that 2004 will be a great year. The opportunities we face will only increase as the new technology continues to emerge. Sure, some will "bite the bullet" but, we live in a great time, and I look forward to it with great anticipation.

Did you know that subscribers to Bob Osgoodby's Free Ezine the "Tip of the Day" get a Free Ad for their Business at his Web Site? Great Business and Computer Tips - Monday thru Friday. Instructions on how to place your ad are in the Newsletter. Subscribe at: http://adv-marketing.com/business/subscribe2.htm

As usual, most of us procrastinate and then just dread getting all your tax preparation together ...

Then a couple of years ago, this little gem saved my hide!

Internet Tax Helper

This is HANDS-DOWN the best software I've seen for legally helping you claim EVERY penny you are legally entitled to for having a home-based internet business.

The developer of this software, Kevin Wilke, is one of the sharpest minds in the biz and has really created a dynamite solution that eliminates the tax-nightmare you normally experience on April 14th.

You'll easily be able to keep track of all your earnings and commissions with this software. You'll find more details here:

Internet Tax Helper

Class is an aura of confidence that is being sure without being cocky. Class has nothing to do with money. Class never runs scared. It is self-discipline and self-knowledge. It's the sure footedness that comes with having proved you can meet life.
- Ann Landers, born 1918

You must understand the whole of life, not just one little part of it. That is why you must read, that is why you must look at the skies, that is why you must sing and dance, and write poems, and suffer, and understand, for all that is life.
- J. Krishnamurti, Indian Philosopher

If we are facing in the right direction, all we have to do is keep on walking.
- Buddhist Proverb

Rejuvenating Your Affiliate Checks And Reducing Your Advertising Budget!
(c) Copyright by Ewen Chia

Once upon a time in a land far, far away.... Isn't that usually the first opening statement in most fairytales? That infamous line that began such great children lore of days gone by.

If you think about it, it's really a brilliant beginning. It sets the mood for the tale about to be spun as one that happened in a long ago setting where fairy tales and legends could have been a reality.

I think that statement is about to make a big comeback in the world of affiliate marketing.

Once Upon a Time....

There was once a time when getting online, setting up a few banners, trading a few links with other sites, placing an ezine ad here and there, and not pay a penny for any of it, would reap a tremendous windfall of traffic to the vendor's site and, in return, a nice commission check every two weeks.

Then an evil darkness descended upon the Internet and all the advertising strategies started to cost money. Gasp!

The tactics that worked no longer reaped the bountiful harvest of traffic and commissions it once yielded. The Internet was set upside down in search of a new strategy ... that one tactic that would bring back the wealth and ease of affiliate marketing.

Then, it happened!

A new day in marketing affiliate programs began and the Internet was brought back to it's once prosperous days. Marketers could now set up a "mini-site" full of great content that would rank high in the search engines and draw in wary and unsuspecting visitors from which to prey upon their very credit cards.

Great wealth was had by all and order was restored!

But alas, as it happens with all great times, this period of reformation started to slow down. The search engines changed their rules. People were no longer so unsuspecting. The world had become wise to the ploy of the affiliate marketer.

Darkness and despair returned to the Internet and, once again, armed only with a desire to make a living online, the affiliate heads off on a new journey that will bring joy back to the land...

--> The Tactic That Saved Affiliate Marketing!

Yes, what you just read is a true story, but sometimes it feels like we're within our very own Disney movie. Complete with ogres, dragons, evil kings, space aliens, a talking mouse and a sword stuck in a stone that no one can seem to free.

One moment we're up and the next we're knocked back down by the dark forces of the Internet.

--> Two Steps Needed For Affiliate Prosperity

As it goes with all business, growth is the key to any kind of success we can dream about. Whether you're promoting just one product or a thousand, the key to a stable online presence is growth.

Now that the former means of advertising and manipulation of the search engines no longer work effectively, you need to take steps forward toward seeking out new tactics and advertising strategies in order to secure that needed growth. And to do it with the least possible cost.

There are two distinct steps that now need to be taken to make that search successful.

1) Creating a tool that you can use over and over again that people will want.

2) Keeping your advertising budget to a minimum while still maintaining a strong Internet presence.

Yes, on the outside it looks like a daunting and almost impossible task, unless you pump in thousands of dollars.

But, I said you need to do it with the least possible cost.

--> Here's The Answer:

People are looking for one thing. In a recent survey, 85% of the people who log onto the Internet are all searching for information.

WebMD is one of the busiest sites, in terms of traffic, on the Internet. Millions of people visit that site each week. They are not there to buy anything ... they just want information.

That's the key to affiliate success.

Remember the two points: A tool that you can use over and over again, and keeping your advertising budget to a minimum.

Information does both of those at the same time.

By simply putting together a short "mini" ebook, you are achieving all of your objectives.

--> Giving People What They Want

Let's say for example you are an affiliate for a fishing website.

By putting together a short ebook on a certain fishing tip, or product, you are giving the people exactly what they want.

The people who download your ebook are reading about something that interests them. Now here's the real secret ingredient.

Within that ebook, among the body of your information, you place strategic links back to the vendor's site where each and every time the readers buy something you receive the commission!

They are not pressured into buying anything and are a lot more receptive to a casual mention of a product or website than when confronted with a hard sales pitch.

--> Lowering Your Advertising Budget

So how does this all work to lowering your advertising budget and keeping more money in your pocket?

While the ebook is free, why not make it so that the people who download it can also give it away for free?

That way you are exponentially multiplying the number of people who will read your ebook AND visit the site you're an affiliate of.

If you're reaching more people by using a "viral" (the techie term) ebook you can then decrease the amount of advertising you need to do.

--> A Happy Ending

As the fearless affiliate marketer thus raised the sword in the air and slayed the dark beast of the Internet, order was restored and affiliate marketers everywhere rejoiced in the newfound prosperity brought unto them.

No longer were they slaves to old tyrannical techniques, but now had the information needed in order to prosper and build a lifelong business under the rule of freedom!

Ewen Chia is an affiliate marketing expert who has successfully promoted many different affiliate programs using the techniques he has perfected in "Mini Ebook Secrets" ... Receive more information on this explosive tactic at http://www.miniebook.com

This is a very interesting and fascinating JavaScriptc calendar. It shows you the current month's calendar, and the current day is highlighted! A very neat effect - some great JavaScripting!

http://www.resource-a-day.net/resources/calendar/ .

Plus ... you get all the features you could ever want in an ebook software package.

Do not take my word for it. Check it out yourself. eBook Generator

Legal Stuff ...

We accept no responsibility whatsoever for the content, profitability or legality of any published articles or advertisements contained within KIT.

And, although all of the articles have been selected for their content, the publishing of such articles within this newsletter does NOT constitute a recommendation of the products or services mentioned or advertised within those articles.

Be responsible! Always do your own Due Diligence before responding to any offer.