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Understanding The California Child And Spousal Support Calculation Program

Many parents have questions about the use of a child support calculator program in determining child support in California Courts.There are several different brands of child support calculators used by attorneys. All of these are required to be certified by the California Judicial Counsel for use in the Courts. The programs may look different to the user; However, they are all based on the same calculation formulas that are listed in the California Family Code.The child support calculator essentially works by analyzing three basic factors:1. The number of children, if any, in a family. In addition, the program must also consider the percentage of the time that each parent has custody of the children.2. The Income of each of the parties.3. Other specific input figures that the Family Code allows the Court to consider when making an award of Child or Spousal Support.The first factors to be input are the number of children, and the percentage of time that each parent has parenting time with the children. This is commonly known as the timeshare. The higher the timeshare of the non-custody parent, the less the support amount they may be required to pay.The support calculator next calculates the net income of the parents. The attorney enters each parent’s gross income, and the program figures out how much money they actually take home after Federal and State taxes are deducted.Obviously, an attorney who represents a higher income parent needs to look for every entry that will reduce his client’s net income. In the alternative, the opposing attorney will try to figure out every legal factor to have the child support calculator make that parent’s net income higher.There are also other inputs that a careful family law attorney will look into to make sure that the child support order is accurate. Parents are able to deduct certain monthly expenses from their income. This often include union dues, health insurance premiums and mandatory retirement plan contributions. The court can also consider tax deductions that will affect a parent’s tax obligation. This usually will include any tax deductible mortgage interest.I have calculated the results of the support calculator program for a typical family scenario.This sample family has two children. Mother has primary custody and Father has 30% timeshare. He earns around $70,000 per year and Mother earns $2,500 per month. Father has deductions from his income of $300 for union dues and health insurance to cover the children.The child support calculation program results in a Child Support order of $1,197 per month from Father to Mother. In addition, the Spousal Support order is $180 from Husband to Wife.The important message is that an experienced family law attorney should be very careful when discussing support issues with their client. The attorney must make sure that every possible factor that will benefit their client is considered by the court when the matter of support is before the Court.

When You Should Change Your Digital Marketing Strategy

Digital Marketing is continually evolving and this may seem unsettling at times. Strategies that were working in past, might not be effective in the present. Do you know why many businesses fail to get ahead of their competitors? It’s simply because they are not willing to adapt to the ever-changing world of digital media. But, the great thing about a digital marketing strategy is that you can change them on the fly in response to real-time results and analytics data. While this may seem tricky as if you change things too quickly, you may not be able to find if your strategy worked for long-term. But if you wait for a long time, you are likely to waste your two valuable resources: time and money.With that said, how do you know when its the right time to change your Digital Marketing strategy? To help you keep up with the fast-paced industry, I’ve created this post to help you know when to change your digital marketing strategy.Below are the 5 signs to help you decide when to quit your existing strategy.1. Focusing on low-value metricsIf you’re concentrating on low-value metrics like impressions and clicks, you may be missing out because impressions and clicks only let you know about your marketing visibility. And not the real accuracy of your strategies.2. Only focusing on your brand not on audience needs Every marketer wants to spread their brand name but you should not overdo by pasting your brand name all over everything. In fact, make your content educational that focus on your audience problems and needs. This would really help you in targeting buyers in initial stages of the buyer’s journey.3. Over usage of keywords Although, it’s required to place keywords in your content, Google’s priority always lies in providing reach user experience and relevancy of content. Google has nothing to do with how many times your site shows the keyword like “Digital Marketing Strategy.”4. Don’t rely on your instinct Your prior experience is certainly precious. But your decision-making process should not be only based on what worked in the past. It’s a really bad idea as what worked tomorrow may be completely irrelevant today. Therefore guiding your marketing strategy through objective data will only get you better results.5. Not integrated Whether it’s about veteran digital marketer, sitting in IT or a start-up company, it’s too common for digital marketing strategies to be finished in silos. It is an easier way but of course, it’s not effective. It’s true that digital approach works best when it’s integrated with traditional channels.Now you know that if you need to change your digital marketing strategy or not, here is a complete guide to help you build a new, powerful marketing strategy to achieve your online goals.What are the essential steps for creating an effective digital marketing strategy? When creating a marketing strategy for your business, always keep your audience first. Set goals, plan your strategy, implement it, and finally measure your success.

Research on your target market and competitors

Know your audience because if you don’t them, how can you help them

Integrate different marketing strategies and use only the correct tools

If you don’t have the required skills set, don’t hesitate to purchase special services

Identify your online value proposition and apply it across all digital marketing channels

Last but definitely not the least, prepare yourself

But before you do something ask yourself few questions. Asking yourself right questions and having their answers in place will certainly help you make the right decisions. I’ve given some Q’s & A’s below to help you out.Which digital channels are most effective for you and why? With so many digital channels around, it gets difficult to choose the best one. So you can identify it with these simple basics:

Identify the channel where most of your potential customers like to hang out

Analyze your target audience behavior

Build awareness with Twitter

Attend industry events and conferences

Social media and newsletters to reach out to your potential customers

SEO or combination of SEO and PPC to help you attract more visitors

How to evaluate your digital marketing activities? Unfortunately, some companies don’t know how to answer this question correctly. If you’re also one of them, don’t feel embarrassed! Just hop on and find out how can you determine the right metrics and evaluate your current digital marketing activities.

Identify your target KPI (Key Performance Indicator) to help you understand what’s working

Monitor your website traffic and sales to know the necessary statistics about your customers

Track and measure your metrics through Google Analytics

Survey your site visitors to find if they’re satisfied with your solutions

Track ROI, conversions, market share, and sales

How to make your business stand out from the crowd? In today’s competitive digital market it’s really difficult to make your business stand out from your competitors. But an effective strategy can help you stay ahead of them. Let’s see how.

Effectively communicate and educate your customers

Stay honest and transparent to build customer’s loyalty

Talk less, listen more

Be authoritative and helpful in what you do

Know your competitors and learn from them

Be creative, open-minded, and try new technologies

Speak in your audience language

Use proof points and testimonials to show you’re the best

Final Thoughts As the world of online landscape changes, so should your digital marketing strategy. So it’s essential to stay aware of the changing market and the new advancements in technology to help you grow furthermore.

Is There a Brand in Your Stand?

Watch out for the branding gurus. Beware of the branding police who focus only on images of brand. Fire the branding consultants who feel qualified to tell you what your brand should be. Ignore the branding zealots who proclaim “brand or die”.Good, now that we have frightened off the undesirables let’s address some fundamental questions about branding and offer you some probing questions to consider. That first paragraph demonstrates the three rules of creative positioning as explained below.Should you have a brand? Maybe. It depends on the goals of your business. You need to ask yourself some questions. Will the brand give you the return on your investment? Will you invest the resources to claim and sustain the brand?What is a brand?A brand is the emotional bond that your clients have with you. Ask your best clients how they would describe you to others. Look for the common message in what they say – especially the emotion. That might be your brand.Brand is the feeling others experience when they think about you and your product. Brand can help them think of you first – or better yet – only you. Brand can justify higher prices – or even better – make price a non-issue.Not BrandingBranding is not about creative logos, pretty fonts and pantone colors. Fire anyone who attempts to sell you that pabulum. Those things are only images. Have you noticed that the successful brands change these images every few years?Branding is a marketing strategy. It is only one of many marketing strategies from which you might choose.Is branding an accident or on purpose? Because branding is about creating emotional messages you are always branding. However, are you aware of your messages, are you consistent and are you effectively branding yourself?You could create or claim your brand. Dominos Pizza created their brand – “Pizza in 30 minutes or its free”. They own that brand. It’s simple, memorable and unique. Some companies look for an opening and build their business to create that brand. Some companies discover their brand by accident. Feedback from clients, remarks from the media or a competitor’s comment reveals the brand that was hidden in plain sight. In that case it is up to you to claim the brand and run with it.Avis claimed their brand by turning a disadvantage into their brand when they launched their marketing campaign with “Avis is only Number 2 in rent-a-cars, so why go with us? We try harder.” And with cheekiness they leverage further on their “disadvantage” by adding, “The lines at our counters are shorter.” That brand has been successful for over 40 years.How do you create your brand? There are two ways. Like Coke, Nike and MacDonald you could throw gazillions of dollars at it. Or you could use creative positioning. Look for the holes in the marketplace. Go to where your competition is not and claim that position. Take a stand like Harley Davidson, Buckley’s Cough Mixture and Nova Scotian Crystal.Each of these companies claimed positions in the market the competition was unwilling to take. Folks either love or hate Harley Davidson. Buckley’s proudly claimed that “it tastes awful but it works” along with a money back guarantee. Nova Scotian Crystal is proudly the only Canadian crystal manufacturer and they offer an incredible one year breakage warranty. Drop your whisky glass and they will replace it; no questions asked.Each of these companies was willing to take a position that would drive some folks away while attracting a loyal crowd of fans.The three principles of creative positioning are best explained by UK entrepreneur BJ Cunningham, who as CEO of The Enlightened Tobacco Company sold a cigarette called “Death Cigarettes”. It was presented in a black package emblazoned with a white skull-and-crossbones logo. Just imagine how this might appeal to the rebels. Everyone except the tobacco companies knew that cigarette smoking was bad for your health. BJ did what none of the other tobacco companies were willing to do. He took a stand.Cunningham’s three principles of creative positioning: 1. Take a polarized position. 2. Make enemies. 3. Create tension.Branding starts with market review and self-examination. Standing alone can be scary, exhilarating and hugely profitable. It you are going to claim a powerful brand take a position away from the crowd. Stand where no one else is standing.

Promote Your Business Online With the Benefit of Driving Repeat Sales From Your Customers

In this article I am going to share with you possibly the most effective strategy which you can use to promote your business online with the benefit of driving repeat sales from your customers.This approach means more sales on a more regular basis from your customers – and that means more profitable sales. And if you are running a small business then you don’t need me to tell you the importance of profitability. Repeat sales from existing customers are almost always more profitable, and it’s easier to sell to existing customers because they already know you.Promote your business online with email marketing is one of the most profitable and easiest ways to drive repeat sales from existing customers and prospects – it’s roughly six to twelve times less expensive to sell to an existing customer than it is to acquire a new one.Email marketing is:Easy
Fast
Free
MeasurableAnd yet – for some bizarre reason promoting your business online with email marketing it is one of the most neglected opportunities. Let me give you an example of a wasted opportunity to promote your business online with email marketing.When was the last time you received an email from your hairdresser? Seriously, hair salons are losing a fortune by not building an email list and sending emails to their clients? Why?How often do you intend to make an appointment with your hairdresser, but don’t actually get round to doing it until at least several weeks later? A regular email from your hairdresser would be a great prompter and mean more clients would make their appointments more regularly – meaning more profit for the hair salon.Here is a real example of email marketing in action!A client of mine has a thriving retail business which sells online and offline. The business has been in existence since 1985. Two years ago they became a client of mine, and I immediately identified a lack of regular ongoing communication with their existing clients. They held email addresses for all their existing online customers. I immediately introduced a “promote your business online with email marketing” strategy, and for the past two years their existing customers have received emails once a month whilst at the same time we have grown their email marketing list by attracting new opt-in prospects.During that two year period – which includes the global recession – my client’s online sales have increased by 50%. We have made no other changes to their online sales strategy during that period.It’s not rocket science, communicate with your customers on a regular basis giving them hints, tips, advice, offers and useful information – and more of your customers will buy more products and services from you on a more regular basis.I can virtually guarantee that if you promote your business online with email marketing you will increase your sales. Email marketing is a free way to promote your business online, and if done properly it can be extremely effective and profitable.If you would like to learn how to:Build a list of opt-in email addresses which you can use for email marketing.
Write and send compelling emails that will develop closer relationships with your customers and drive more sales.
Automate the whole process to make it easy and maximize profits.