Boomer Generation Fitness Tips

A generation of baby boomers is now entering their 60′s with high expectations of themselves when it comes to how they will spend their retirement years.  The boomer generation has always thought of lifestyle as a key factor in determining how successful they are at living and the key to that living is health.  Many boomers plan to travel the world and see all of the things that they have read about over the years, but without good health and a reasonable level of fitness, those dreams are often shattered.

Most of us dread the thought of spending long tedious hours in a gym grunting and groaning on machines that are dripping with someone else’s sweat and germs in order to restart some sort of muscle activity.  This process is usually spurred on by looking in a mirror and realizing that it will be difficult to view all of the sight seeing locations, let alone getting on and off the bus, without some minimum level of strength and agility. What is the easiest and most effective way to approach better health through fitness? We need to concentrate on three main body areas, mainly upper body, core and lower body.  There is no point in trying to work on minor muscles when what we really need to do is make sure that the major groups are strong enough to do the job.  The smaller ones will follow along as we become more active.  Let’s look at 3 specific calisthenics you can do at home in about 10 minutes per day:

  1. UPPER BODY   push ups are the obvious choice to make the most difference in the least amount of time.  If you can’t use your toes to sustain the full body push up, then use your knees and keep your back straight as you lower your upper body to the floor and raise back up.  It is very important to maintain correct form but just as important to do as many push ups as possible in 90 seconds.  I realize that might be only one, but to get the most benefit requires pushing yourself slightly beyond what you thought you could do.  Spend an honest minute and a half working at your pushups and record the number so that you can do an extra one next time.  When finished, rest for 2 minutes.
  2. CORE   you know what’s coming, situps, of course.  Two ways to do this, first crunches.  Lie on your back, raise your knees to a 45 degree angle with your feet firmly on the ground and cross your hands over your chest – never place your hands behind yur neck.  Now, spend 90 seconds lifting your upper body as high as possible (this might be only a few inches) and lowering back to the floor.  Try to move your head up and down vertically as opposed to bending it forward and straining your neck.  Count again and add more each day to increase your core strentgth.  The second method requires bending your knees in the same way but hooking your feet under a chair or something sturdy so that they won’t lift off the ground.  Now, keeping your hands crossed on your chest, lift your entire upper body to a sitting position and return to the floor slowly.  Count again and record the total number you do in 90 seconds.  You will do fewer of these but they are much more effective. Rest for another full two minutes.
  3. LOWER BODY   squats are a great choice and once again 90 seconds and do as many as possible.  Standing with your arms stretched straight out in front of you, palms down, move your arms back and keep them at shoulder height then lower them to your sides while you lower your body to squat position keeping your back straight. Lift your self back up, using your legs, thighs and hips in a smooth motion to your original position. 

The key to the success of this program is the natural process of your own body which continues to benefit from this brief activity for hours afterward.  Dr. Al Sears, in his program called PACE, shows how our bodies increase the capacity of our heart and lungs without creating more fat stores by the use of a short duration but high intensity workout.  This is especially important for a boomer generation trying to become healthy and fit in the most efficient way possible.

Module 1 Chapter 4 How to Plan Your Marketing Funnel

MODULE 1CHAPTER 4 HOW TO PLAN YOUR MARKETING FUNNEL1.0 INTRODUCTION2.0 OBJECTIVES3.0 MAIN CONTENT3.1 What is Marketing Funnel?3.2 Awareness3.3 Consideration3.4 Conversion3.5 Loyalty3.6 Advocacy4.0 CONCLUSION5.0 SUMMARY6.0 ASSIGNMENT1.0 INTRODUCTIONThe next thing that naturally follows Market Research is the process of setting up your Marketing Funnel. This chapter will focus on how to do just that.2.0 OBJECTIVES- To highlight what a strategic marketing funnel is- To demonstrate how to tactically set it up- To encourage each student to set her own in her chosen market niche.3.0 MAIN CONTENTBefore we go in to discuss how to plan your Marketing Funnel, there is a need to define it.3.1 What is a marketing funnel?It is an overall plan to channel new prospects into your business with the aim of developing a relationship, a sale, repeat sales and finally turning them to become not only your clients, but also your raving Fans for life.It has also been defined by other authorities as a simple marketing system that you set up to collect email addresses of your prospects in such a way that you can market to them automatically.There are two types namely: a lead-driven and a sales-driven marketing funnel.After securing a purchase from your prospect, the former puts the customer in your list, your control for further marketing while the later puts them in the affiliate merchants’ control, gone forever out of your hands.For beginners I recommend lead-driven marketing funnel as it is very useful for affiliate marketing, but sales-driven marketing funnel is good if you have your own product as a merchant in ClickBank etc. where other affiliate are selling for you. At the end you get the money and the list for further marketing.When you are setting up your lead-driven marketing funnel, you need 2 things namely: a free offer and an autoresponder. I will deliberate on them in other parts of this eCourse.However, strategically, a marketing Funnel is usually depicted as an inverted pyramid (or funnel), with 5 connected parts:

The top broad inverted base =>

The middle small part =>

The smaller underneath vertex =>

The smallest tip that opens into the funnel channel =>

The channel.
The inverted Pyramid (or Funnel) portions described above can then be labelled in that order as listed:

Awareness

Consideration

Conversion

Loyalty

Advocacy
3.2 AwarenessThe top broad zenith (in the inverted pyramid) represents all the ways you attempt to create awareness for your brand, product or website; to attract and lead the people to your website. This include over 5-10 free and paid ways that you will regularly use to attract prospects to your website and finally to your products.Top and easiest among them are the Social Media – Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Google+, Squidoo Lens, Classified Ads, Press Releases, HubPages, Answer Sites, Forum, etc.There are simple ways of placing ads on those sites – those kind of ads you often see on sites like Facebook and Yahoo Answers, etc.The major aim is to create public/market awareness of your brand, products and services.3.3 ConsiderationThe middle portion called consideration. It is where you offer to them valuable goods and services as baits and pecks to get them involved in doing business with you.The goal here is to make a calculated attempt to convince them to join your list.Thus, whatever you are offering must be very relevant to your market niche, but quite different from what you are putting up for sale.If you are selling Affiliate products, the vendor will more often than not provide you with products that will serve as Free Offers which you can use here as baits to get people into your lists. If they don’t, you can create them by yourself using free but relevant downloads or free products from other sources.3.4 ConversionThe bottom portion represents the period that you have successfully convince them to join your list. This is called conversion.Two things may happen immediately they have join your list. They will either buy your product or fail to do so.As a savvy marketer, you must know that the game is not yet over till (and even after) they have bought from you.The next thing is to get them on your educational series by sending to them lessons on the relevant niche. More often than not, they will later end up buying from you (if they did not, initially).Thus, for most prospects, they need some kind of education on what they are about to get involved.Email series of at least 7 lessons can help the prospect pass over this stage to become a customer.3.5 LoyaltyLoyalty is when your customer shows up repeatedly to buy your related products in connection with the initial purchase.3.6 AdvocacyIf you did the above groundwork well, your customers by now will be recommending your products and services to other customers – his friends, relations, acquaintances, etc. It is a sign of Loyalty and what every Marketer that knows his Onions should be aiming at.This is the ultimate level of Internet Marketing!Planning your marketing funnel:Tactically, here is a simple and straightforward way to plan your marketing funnel.From top to bottom Marketing Funnel typically contains:

Freebies

Sign up

One Time Offers (OTOs) often at a very minimal initial prices

Free eCourse

Sales Promotion

Membership Site Offer or

Another OTO, all at reduced initial prices

These positions may vary slightly depending on your goal for setting up the marketing funnel
4.0 CONCLUSIONIt is only when you set up a marketing funnel for your niche market that you have really start business – online business. Otherwise, Internet Marketing is just your hobby and not yet a Business for you.5.0 SUMMARYThe conduct of this aspect of business is also influenced by the approach of the marketer, some prefers a Soft Approach while others use the Hard Approach to Marketing.I will return to this topic with more details when I will be discussing on setting up the Autoresponder Messages.What do you think you should do next after this?Did I heard you say: Domain Name Registration and Hosting?You are absolutely right, and that is what I will be talking about in the next chapter.6.0 ASSIGNMENTCan you plan and set up your own funnel in your chosen market niche before you go unto the next eCourse?

Ways to Grow Your Business With Videos

Videos have become a must for businesses of all sizes. As the cost of video production decreases and the popularity of this form of advertising increases, even the smallest companies are using videos to reach out to current customers and target potential customers, both online and in-store. A well-made video by one of the growing number of corporate video production companies will more than pay for itself in new business. Let’s take a look at some of the ways that videos can be used to grow your company.

Marketing Videos

A 2011 Nielsen study found that videos are fifty times more likely to appear on the first page of search engine results than other types of content. Many potential customers would prefer to watch a short video to learn about a business’s products and services than read through pages of text on a website or in a brochure. A video is a good way to introduce yourself and your employees as well as allow people to see the faces behind the business.

You can show numerous examples of your work in a short, entertaining format that is more viewer-friendly rather than asking a customer to scroll through numerous pictures. Remember that online videos should be short – no more than two or three minutes. Most people will not watch much longer than that. It is better to have several short, engaging videos than one long one. Leave them wanting more – not less.

Instructional Videos

Online videos are an excellent way to demonstrate how to use your products. Step-by-step written instructions can be overwhelming, and many people find it easier to follow visual instructions. If someone feels confident that they can assemble and/or use a product easily, they are more likely to purchase it and then to keep it and recommend it to others. Even if you do not sell something that requires instructions, you can demonstrate the variety of ways to use your product and get the most out of it. Good video editing is key to keeping the piece at an optimum length and easy to follow. A video production company with experience in this type of piece can help you make a how-to video that will inspire customers to purchase and use a product.

In-store/Lobby Videos

Never miss an opportunity to market to current customers – even if they are already in your place of business. While they are waiting, give them something to look at besides their iPhone. As people’s attention spans grow ever shorter, more businesses are finding ways to entertain and inform customers, whether they are in a check-out line at the grocery store, or pumping gas at a gas station. You can use an in-store piece to promote special offers and new products that your customers may not know about or to tell them about something that your business is doing to help the community.

Customer Testimonial Videos

What better way to present customer testimonials about your business than on film? When a potential customer sees a person extolling the virtues of your business, the impact is more powerful than if they read a written testimonial. They are the next best thing to a face-to-face recommendation from a friend or family member. A few short customer testimonials from different types of people that cover a variety of products or services and how they met the customers’ needs can be an effective marketing tool.

Optimizing Video Viewership

Keywords: If your video is online, it is critical to capture people’s attention with a catchy title that also lets people know what your business does. Keywords are crucial in helping anyone searching the Internet for a service or product to find your business. Place keywords in the title and description box. Be sure to include your website at the very beginning of the description.

SEO: Search engine optimization (SEO) is an entire industry unto itself. Many corporate video production companies have professionals who know all the SEO tricks to get videos in front of the right people.

Social Media: Put your videos on all of your social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+) in addition to your website. Use a service like TubeMogul to share them across multiple video platforms. If you have a YouTube channel, include a link to it on your website, and include it on your business cards and printed marketing materials. Don’t forget to send them to the people on your e-mail contact list as well.

Branding: Every video is an opportunity to get your brand out there. Your company name and logo should be clearly visible in every one.

Video is truly becoming a necessity for building a business. Don’t be intimidated by the idea. No one is expecting Spielberg-directed films. However, they should look professional in order to give potential customers confidence in you and your business. An experienced video production company can ensure that your business is presented in the best light, and that it gets in front of the maximum number of people interested in what you have to offer.