Identity Theft
Everyone is vulnerable to identity theft. However, you can do some things to protect yourself from identity theft.
- Do not sign the back of your credit cards. Instead, put “PHOTO ID REQUIRED“.
- When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the ‘For’ line. Instead, just put the last four numbers of your credit card number. The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won’t have access to it.
- Put your work phone # on your checks instead of your home phone.
- If you have a PO Box use that instead of your home address. If you do no t have a PO Box, use your work address.
- Never have your SS# printed on your checks. You can add it if it is necessary. But if you have It printed, anyone can get it.
- Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license, credit card, etc.. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place.
- If you have a passport. Make a photocopy of your passport.
If you lose your wallet or if is stolen, take the following safety steps:
- Cancel your credit cards immediately. Therefore, have the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them.
- File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards, etc., were lost or stolen. This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one).
- Call the 3 national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name.
Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742
Trans Union : 1-800-680 7289
- Call the Social Security fraud line number.
Social Security Administration (fraud line): 1-800-269-0271
By following these simple steps you can stop identity theft in its tracks.
Content is King
Writing Relevant Web Content
As a web designer and search engine marketing expert I can assure you that “Content is King”. This was true in 1996 when I built my first commercial website and it still true today.
Search engine content will also help you to achieve higher ranking in the major search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing.
In 1996, most search engines were directories, content was important, but they relied heavily on meta tags and other source content. To game the search engines many web designers would flood the pages repeatedly with keywords. They then would make the keywords the same colors as the background of the page. This would make it invisible to the reader, but would display in the source code that search engine were reading. This gave the illusion to the search engines that their web pages were rich in content for their keywords. If you tried this trick today you would be blacklisted from the search engine.
Today, blogging gives you the ability to have relevant content without trying to fool the search engines. A blog allows you to create content around the keywords that your potential clients are searching.
Before creating a blog page with relevant content it is critical to identify keywords that people are searching for. Being #1 on Google for a search term that no one searches is a waste of your time and energy. Most search engines provide tools that allow you to determine if anyone is searching for your keywords.
If you are unable to write relevant content for your website, it may pay to hire a writer to accomplish this. Cire Web Design and Hosting has professional writers who can create content for your website at a very reasonable rate. We also provide web development, domain names and everything you need to have a successful website.
Remember “Content is King”.
We build websites so you can build your business.
Converting Miles to Kilometers
To convert miles to kilometers in your head, double the number of miles four times and then divide by 10.
To convert kilometers to miles, halve the number 4 times and multiply by 10.

Customer Service
Truth or Delusion?
If you provide good customer service,
people will refer business to you.
Delusion: Here’s the reason. Good customer service is prerequisite. It’s a minimum expectation.
Think about it. Would you refer somebody to me if I provided lousy customer service? Of course not. You’ll end up looking like a dope in the eyes of your prospect. Your own credibility would suffer.
Good customer service is part of what the prospect expects when you refer him to me. If you are recommending me to him. I must be something pretty special, right. And if I want to keep that customer coming back, I’ll need to give him more than the minimum expectation of simply good service. I’ll need to provide great, outstanding, memorable customer service to really stand out.
Truth or Delusion?: Busting Networking’s Biggest Myths (Hardcover)

Biography
Dr. Ivan Misner is the Founder & Chairman of BNI, the world’s largest business networking organization . BNI was founded in 1985. The organization has thousands of chapters throughout every populated continent of the world. Each year, BNI generates millions referrals resulting in billions dollars worth of business for its members.
Lunar Letters
It is easy to tell wheather the moon will be bigger or smaller tomorrow night.
In the Northern Hemisphere, the moon spells DOC each month.
First it looks like a D (waxing moon and gets bigger each night), then an O (full), then a C (waning moon and getting smaller each night).
South of the equator, it’s reversed and spells COD.
-Katie Gladstone
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Determining Wind Direction
If you are flying over a rural area and need to know the wind direction at ground level, look at the cows. They normally stand with their heads downwind.
- Elaine Gibbons
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Pop’s Piggy Bank
Every dollar you save in your twenties supplies one dollar of monthly retirement income in your sixties
- Elaine Lyon, Tax Advisor
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Are all Accountants CPAs?
No!
All CPAs are accountants, but not all accountants are CPAs. CPA is the abbreviation for Certified Public Accountant.
The principal differences between accountants and CPAs are education and experience. In order to become a CPA, there are education and experience requirements needed to be fulfill. In addition, a Uniform CPA Exam must be passed.
CPAs are many things. They are chief financial officers for Fortune 500 companies and advisors to small neighborhood businesses. They are well-respected strategic business advisors and decision-makers. They act as consultants on many issues, including taxes and accounting.
A Certified Public Accountant is a trusted financial advisor who helps individuals, businesses, and other organizations plan and reach their financial goals.
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Toilet Blues
A leak from a toilet tank into the bowl can waste hundreds of gallons of water.
To check for a leak, put three drops of food coloring in the tank and wait a half hour.
If the color appears in the bowl, it is time to replace the tank’s flapper valve.
– Jack Romig, green writer


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