It’s A Women’s World

When low rise jeans first became popular, I was one of the ones who resisted. It could not be comfortable, I thought, and there was really no reason for anyone’s jeans to be that low. This isn’t old age talking here, perhaps it is more of a body image issue. I couldn’t imagine that low rise jeans would look good on me anyway, so I passed them up time and time again as I shopped.

While you still won’t find me in low rise jeans, I have learned to love mid rise ones. They aren’t quite as low and the fit is surprisingly nice. As with anything, you have to try it before you dismiss it. If you have never tried low rise jeans, go ahead and try a pair on. You may find you don’t like them, but at least you know. No one says you have to wear them, but if you don’t want to look like you are wearing jeans from twenty years ago, you have to step up at some point and give them a go.

Low rise jeans are not as popular as they were a few years ago, but the high waist jeans are still out. Many people, myself included, have fallen for the mid rise type of jean and won’t buy anything else now. The high rise jeans have become very passé, and some people will not be caught dead in them. If you aren’t sure you want to give up the high waist, figure out why. It could be a matter of not wanting to follow the trends, or it might be an issue of body image.

Some women won’t try low rise jeans because they have a belly. They like the support high rise jeans offer, and feel like low rise jeans might leave them feeling like they are hanging out there. This can be a concern, but let me assure you, you can look and feel great in low rise jeans, as long as you buy the right pair. This might mean trips in and out of many stores looking for the right pair, but once you find them, you won’t want to go back to the old style. If you find they feel just too low, try the next size up. This may offer you more in the front, but will still look good. Belts, I hear, are in as well.

As an online small business owner, you’re always looking for new ways to promote your business. Here’s a terrific way to popularize your site, increase your customer base and sales and profit from advertising promotions all in one shot. How? Get into the newsletter writing game and publish your own electronic newsletter. If you can write a letter, you can write a newsletter. After all, you know your product better than anyone. Even if writing isn’t your thing, you probably have a staffer who would enjoy newsletter writing. You might offer an internship to a journalism student at your local college.

Some keys to newsletter writing success:
Establish a schedule of publication and stick to it. Once a month is sufficient for most small businesses.

Provide useful content in each issue. Let’s say you’re a bookseller. Your content might focus on book reviews, local travel or history, markets, ways to use journals, or how to use Bowkers Books in Print. Any of these topics could be a feature article, which is really all you need in one issue.

In addition to creating your own content, you can use free content too. Free content can be obtained from article directories. Be choosy, some of the content may not be up to snuff. How article directories work is subject experts and business owners submit articles to the article directory for free in exchange for their byline being included. It’s free publicity for the author’s website and helps drive traffic to their site.

Now that you have content, you can make a template of your newsletter and publish each issue in that format. For example, as a bookseller, your template might look like this –

Today’s Literary Quote (perhaps thoughtful quotes from famous authors)
Word of the Day (educate your readers)
Feature Book Review
Feature Article
Subscribe and Unsubscribe information

There are many excellent tutorials and templates available for free online. These provide detailed information on newsletter writing conventions, such as the 65 character line limit, and the pros and cons of a text versus HTML publication.

Here are some advantages to newsletter writing for your business:

You’ll have regular contact with your customers. You’ll remind them of you and your business without a hard sell approach. They’ll receive entertaining and useful information that they can relate to your products or services. Publish seasonal and holiday issues as a gift to your subscribers or a boost to your business.

Once you build your subscriber list, you can solicit other newsletters for exchange advertising. The larger your subscriber list, the more attractive your newsletter becomes for paying advertisers. You may also negotiate commissions on sales on their sites for click throughs from your newsletter.

Your subscribers can forward your newsletter to friends who may become subscribers. Include a statement up front, inviting your readers to pass your newsletter on, but only in it’s entirety. This ensures all recipients get your subscription information. Newsletter writing can be profitable. So get going, and have fun!