THE NATURE AND STRUCTURE OF JAPAN’S ECONOMY

INTRODUCTION

An economy can be seen as any specified collection of inter-related set of marked and unmarked productive activities (Upset 1983). Thus, the Japanese economy can be referred to as all such economic activities taking place in the geographical domain of Japan (domestic economy) or all such economic activities of Japanese residents anywhere they happen to perform such activities in the world Parkin, 1982).

The structure of an economy can be referred to as a complex organizational framework, interlaced network and an outline of logical connectivity through which the activities of an economy are coordinated. An economy’s structure may also refer to those aspects which are basic and long lasting and underpin more transitory aspects of economic life. Structural variables are therefore deep-seated and only change rather gradually.

HISTORY OF JAPANESE ECONOMY
Japan is a country located in the pacific, off the eastern coast of Asia with its capital in Tokyo. According to the 1989 population reports, Japan has 123 million people.

The Japanese economy experienced two periods of rapid development. First in the 19th century after a long interval of national seclusion and the second after the World War II in 1945.

Between 1603 and 1869, the Tokugawa era (a military dictatorship in a feudal setting who brought peace, law, order and isolation), Japan was faced with poverty, low technology and little natural resources endowment.

In 1868, the Meiji Restoration ended 250 years of self-isolation for Japan and introduced an era of rapid economic change. At this time, Japan had no modern machinery, postal systems, railroads or even newspapers. It had no business institutions such as banking and public corporations. Its main resource was a population that was highly literate for a pre industrial economy.

The Meiji reforms however rejuvenated the Japanese economy through certain policies which include:
- Allowing for foreign trade
- Equality of classes
- Division of agricultural estates among the peasants
- Institution of monetary taxes
- Support of private industries through loans and subsidies

They inaugurated a western-based education system for the young, sent thousands of students to the United States and Europe and hired more than 3,000 westerners to teach Maths, science, technology and other foreign languages in Japan.

In order to promote industrialization, the government provided and allocated resources to the private sector, they built factories and ship yards which were sold to entrepreneurs at a fraction of their value. These businesses grew to become large conglomerates.

The country’s takeoff was explosive. Between 1890 and 1938 Japan’s GDP grew at 3.3% each year far faster than the United States and the countries of Western Europe at that stage of development. Manufacturing grew rapidly from 8% GDP in 1888 to 32% by 1938.

The worldwide economic slump of the 1930’s led Japan to increasingly centralize and militarize its economy. The government gave itself control over imports, power to direct private bank was to priority industries and authority to promote heavy industries needed by the military such as petroleum, machine tools, aircraft, iron and steel and automobiles. Heavy industry rose from 35% of manufacturing in 1930 to 65% in 1940. The legacy of the period was a pattern of corporate organization and government business relations that remains influential today.

After this economic make overcame the World War II which pulled down the Japanese economic pillars. They were faced with the problem of reconstruction and economic recovery after the war. Their recovery was initially slow until the Korean War which increased demand for Japan’s exports and made the United States see Japan as an ally.

In the 1980’s, Japanese economic growth was discouraged by the United Sates recession. This left an indelible mark on the Japanese economy even after the United States recovered. Japan progressed but with an imbalance in trade which led to a decrease in export and rise in prices of real estate and stock in 1985. From the 1960’s to the 1980’s Japan had experienced retardation of economic growth with 10 percent average in the 1960’s, 58 averages in the 1970’s and a 4% average in the 1980’s.

Growth was slow in the 1990’s largely due to the Bank of Japan’s failure to cutout interest rates quickly enough to counter the after-effects of over-investment during the late 1980’s. This caused the Bank of Japan to shift to a more restrictive monetary stance in May 1989 thereby spear heading a fall in prices of real estate stock by 50% from 1989 to 1996.

THE NATURE OF THE JAPAN’S ECONOMY
The Japan’s economy is the world’s second largest economy after the United States. Its nominal GDP was put at about US $4.53 trillion compared to $12.42 trillion of the United States. It ranks third after the United States and China when adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP). Its Central Bank has the second largest foreign exchange reserves after China.

Japan’s per capita GDP rose from 21% of the U.S. level in 1955 to 56% in 1970. It has a well educated work force. Majority of the workers are free from personal income taxes while value added rate is only 5%. A greater portion of taxes are paid by corporate bodies.

The Japan’s economy has been on the recovery lane growing at 2% per year in 2003 and 2004 and 2.8% in 2005 unlike previous recovery trends, domestic consumption has been the dominant factor in leading the Japan’s economic growth.

As predicted, the economic recovery continued in 2006 and 2007.



REFERENCES
1. Fukao, Kyoji (2007) (PDF), Real GDP in Pre-War East Asia: A 1934 – 1936 Benchmark Purchasing Power Parity Comparison with the US.

2. Liu, Ta – Chung (1946). China’s National Income 1931 – 1936, An Exploratory Study.

3. Maddison, Angus (2003) The World Economy: Historical Statistics.

4. Powell, Benjamin (2002) “Explaining Japan’s Recession”.

5. “Economic Survey of Japan 2008: Bringing an end to deflation under the new monetary policy framework.

Google Puts You on the Map

How to Build a Small-Business Web Site, Part 6: Marketing for Success

This is the sixth in an ongoing series on buiding a Web site for your small business. Part 1 looks at essential elements of a business Web site. Part 2 offers basic site design guidelines. Part 3 tackles some advanced design issues. Part 4 examines social media tools for building traffic. Part 5 compares outsourcing against doing maintenance work in-house.
Having a Web site opens up the doors to all sorts of low-cost marketing opportunities for small businesses. Sometimes fledgling Web marketers can be overwhelmed by the embarrassment of riches that are available for next to nothing. The key to effective online marketing -- whether it's to drive visitors to your site or convert them to customers when they get there -- is to keep it focused.
If you don't, you might find that you've wasted a lot of time and effort preaching your marketing message to the wrong people in the wrong places. Or worse yet, you simply don't know who you're talking to -- or why.
"A lot of folks simply don't understand the potential of what can be done outside of simply posting a Web site," John Gilbert, vice-president of the Digital Solutions Group for Bader Rutter & Associates, told TechNewsWorld. "Once you have done the basic block and tackle stuff, the next step is really leveraging the medium to stand out above crowd and get noticed. The beautiful thing is that just about everyone is a user of [the Web] -- and a lot of things you can do are zero cost, other than your time."
Following are some guidelines for learning how to get the biggest bang for your buck when it comes to marketing your site.
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Understand Your Goals and Your Audience
Figuring out what you really want your Web site to do should be the number one question you ask yourself. "If you're not clear on their goals up front, that's unfortunate, because your [marketing] can get very fragmented and confusing," Dan Hobin, CEO of G5 Search Marketing, a Web development, advertising and measurement company, told TechNewsWorld.
A good marketing manager will also know how to get the right message in the right hands for the best return on investment.
"Find out where your audience lives on the Web and go there," Melanie Orndorff, social media account manager for the Cimarron Group, an entertainment marketing company in Los Angeles. "If you service model train enthusiasts, then find out the tools they are using to communicate with others."
"Position yourself in places where your prospective buyers are going," confirmed Linda Rigano, director of strategic alliances for ThomasNet, a New York-based marketplace for industrial suppliers. These can include association newsrooms and community forums, trade magazine sites, RSS feeds, industry-related blogs -- anything that speaks to your intended demographic.
Measure Up
It's important to have the right tools to measure the results of your marketing efforts. "If your goal for your Web site is to generate new business by phone, make sure you can measure that," Hobin said.
In addition to the usual suspects -- Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) Analytics et al -- there are complementary tools that can help you keep tabs on the effectiveness of your marketing outreach. These include such things as dynamic phone number generation and dynamic couponing to help you track what ad sources provide you with the best leads.
Open the Lines of Communication
Web sites offer the opportunity for you to engage in conversations with your existing and potential customers, whether creating or contributing to blogs, visiting forums to add your two cents' worth, or posting your company's latest news on social networking or association sites.
"The Web is either the start of the conversation, or is the conversation," Hobin explained. "You need to ensure you have the tools on your site to have a fluid and meaningful conversation." He suggests that where appropriate, set up a portion of your site for blogs and customer feedback.
Keeping pace with the blogging community and social networking services can be extremely time consuming however, so it is important to be strategic in where and how often you want to do this type of thing.
In engaging customers, it is also important that you do it in a way that touches them personally, Orndorff said. For every type of business, that can mean a very different thing.
"If you're a massage therapist, you can post updates on blogs through an e-newsletter to give your audience a sense that you are a live person and show the human side of your business."
Listen and Learn
The fact that your Web site is a communications medium also means you have to pay close attention to the feedback and adapt to maximize its effectiveness. If your tracking tools tell you a particular market or ad campaign isn't passing muster, change it.
If customers are abandoning your site within seconds of arriving, look into what adjustments you can make to engage them. And if no one is talking about you, or posting negative feedback, don't ignore them. However, be careful in deciding where, when and how to engage in the right conversations.
Leverage the Tools That Work for You
There are many free and low-cost tools that can help you to drive traffic to your site and generate sales -- from sponsored links and search marketing services to setting up pages on social networking sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn .
Services such as Google AdWords have become a powerful and effective marketing tool for small business owners, notes Deanna Yick, a spokesperson for Google. The key to getting the most out of services such as AdWords include taking the following steps:
Knowing the right audience for your products and services
Structuring each campaign based on a simple goal, such as a product category, product line or theme
Choosing powerful keywords that resonate with your target audience
Including a strong call to action to draw people to your site
Targeting individual campaigns according to a specific audience and/or geographic region
Continually reviewing your online advertising and making changes when needed
Keep It Simple
This mantra holds true for just about any marketing effort related to your Web site -- whether it's tracking leads or reaching out and touching your community with your blog. Experts say that the best advice they can give to any small business is to approach Web marketing in bite size pieces, keep measuring the results, and then build on your strategy from there. You could test the waters with the basic tried and true tools such as blogs, Twitter , Facebook and LinkedIn and build your strategy from there.
Also, don't be afraid to take advantage of multimedia opportunities to extend your marketing reach, Gilbert said. "The potential for reuse of content at almost no cost is very, very high. If you are presenting at a trade show for example, why not record your presentation and digitize it for redistribution? Podcasts can be very simple and effective marketing tools."
Deliver On Your Promise
"It's critical that your site meets your customers' needs when they come looking for you," said Janet Tarzia, executive director of marketing for ThomasNet.
Marketers should also never underestimate the importance of the usability and searchability of a site. These are integral to turning exploration exercises into bona fide sales. Just as important is a rapid response mechanism or strategy of some kind is critical, since potential or existing customers can be quickly turned off by a lengthy delay to their inquiries.
Speak to Experience
Anyone who has any doubts on the effectiveness of a low cost Web marketing campaign in drumming up business should ask Catherine Simms, the owner of Whiner & Diner in Stamford, Conn. -- a home-based, online provider of eco-friendly pet products.
Since starting her site in December 2006 in Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) Office Live Small Business, she has spent virtually zero dollars on her marketing efforts.
What she has done is work diligently on visiting pet-related forums, posting blogs, and contributing articles to free sites such as Ezine Articles. She has also set up pages on Facebook and MySpace , and tracking customer feedback with the SiteMinder feature of Office Live.
Her efforts have led to a 100 percent increase in sales and interest from customers in Spain, Italy and Europe. "I may have no staff and no overhead, but I've received tons and tons of attention just by commenting on blogs and contributing to forums," she told TechNewsWorld. "Even with the economy, I did very well at Christmas. It takes time, but it works."

Small Business Administration warns of scam letter

The U.S. Small Business Administration is warning small businesses not to respond to letters falsely claiming to have been sent by the SBA asking for bank account information related to federal tax rebates.

The SBA said the fraudulent letters were sent on what appears to be SBA letterhead to small businesses across the country. The letters state that the SBA needs a business’s bank name and account number in order to determine whether the business qualifies for a tax rebate under the Economic Stimulus Act.

“These letters have not been sent by or authorized by the SBA, and all small businesses are strongly advised not to respond to them,” the SBA said.
The SBA is working with the SBA Office of Inspector General to investigate this matter. The Office of Inspector General asks that anyone who receives such a letter report it to the OIG Fraud Line at 800-767-0385, or e-mail at OIGHotline@sba.gov.

THE USES OF TESTS AND NON-TEST TECHNIQUES IN COUNSELLING

INTRODUCTION

Counsellors use tests generally for assessment, placements, and guidance and appraisals to as assist clients to increase their self-knowledge, practice decision making, and acquire new behaviours. They may be used in a variety of therapies e.g. individual, marital, group, and family and for either gathering of data on clients, assessing the level of some traits, such as stress and anxiety, or measuring clients’ personality types. The purpose of non-informational tests is to stimulate further or more in-depth interaction with the client.

Although the published literature on testing has increased, proper test utilization remains a problematic area. The issue is not whether a counsellor uses tests in counselling practices, but when and to what end tests will be used (Corey, Corey, & Callanan, 1984).

TESTING PROCESS
Steps involved in the process of using tests in counselling include the following: - selecting the test, administering test, scoring the test, interpreting results, communicating the results.

Selecting: Having defined the purpose for testing, the counsellor looks to a variety of sources for information on available tests. Resources include review books, journals, test manuals, and textbooks on testing and measurement (Anastasi, 1988; Cronbach, 1979). The most complete source of information on a particular test is usually the test manual.

Administering:
Test administration is usually standardize by the developers of the test. Manual instructions need to be followed in order to make a valid comparison of an individual’s score with the test’s norm group. Non – Standardization tests used in counselling are best given under controlled circumstances. This allows the counsellor’s experience with the test to become an internal norm. Issues of individual versus group administration need to be considered as well. The clients and the purpose for which they are being tested will contribute to decisions about group testing.

Scoring:
Scoring of tests follows the instructions provided in the test manual, the Counsellor is sometimes given the option of having test machine scored rather than hand scored. Both the positive and negative aspects of this choice need to be considered. It is usually believed that test scoring is best handled by a machine because it is free from bias.

Interpreting:
The interpretation of test results is usually the area which allows for the greatest flexibility within the testing process. Depending upon the Counsellor’s theoretical point of view and the extent of the test manual guidelines, interpretation may be brief and superficial, or detailed and explicity theory based (Tinsley & Bradley, 1986). Because this area allows for the greatest flexibility, it is also the area with the greatest danger of misuse. Whereas scoring is best done by a bias-free machine, interpretation by machine is often too rigid. What is needed is the experience of a skilled test user to individualize the interpretation of results.

Communicating:
Feedback of test results to the client completes the formal process of testing. Here, the therapeutic skills of Counsellors come fully into play (Phelps, 1974). The Counsellor uses verbal and non verbal interaction skills to convey messages to clients and to assess their understanding of it.

ISSUES IN TESTING

Confidentiality:
The ethical and legal restrictions on what may be disclosed from counselling apply to the use of tests as much as to other private information shared between client and counsellor. The trust issue, which is inherent in confidentiality, is relevant to every aspect of testing. No information can be shared outside the relationship without the full consent of the client. Information is provided to someone outside the relationship only after the specifics to be used from the testing are fully disclosed to the client. These specifics include the when, what, and to whom of the disclosure. The purpose of disclosure is also shared with the client and what the information will be used for is clearly spelled out.

Issues of confidentiality are best discussed with the client before conducting any test administration. There should be no surprise when the counsellor asks, at a later time, for permission to share results. Clients who are fully informed, before testing takes place, about the issue of confidentiality in relation to testing are more active participants in the counselling process.

Counsellor Preparation:
Tests are only as good as their construction, proper usage and the preparation of the counsellor intending to use them. The skills and competencies counsellors need or using tests in practice are to:

· Understand clearly the intended purpose of a test.
· Beware of the client’s needs regarding the test to be given.
· Having knowledge about the test, its validity, reliability and the norm group for which it was developed.
· Have personally taken the test before administering it.
· Have been supervised in administering, scoring, interpreting, and communicating results of the tests to be given.
Supervision in the practice of providing testing services ideally encompasses all of the above areas of concern. This supervision needs to be conducted by the knowledgeable practitioner with experience in using tests in clinical practice.

NON-TEST COUNSELLING
While it is most often used by certified counsellors, psychologists and psychiatrists, non-directive counselling provides a number of techniques which can be used effectively by teachers and staff when talking with students about their undesirable behaviour.

Attributed to Carl Rogers, this technique was designed to allow the individual in emotional turmoil to talk out problems and resolved difficulties with a minimum of direction being provided by the person serving as counsellor. Rogers believed that everyone has the motivation and ability to change in order to become a better, more “self-actualized” person. To help our students to achieve this state, we as teacher- counsellors, act as a sounding board; observing, listening, and deliberately responding according to certain guidelines while the student explores and analyses the problem and devises a personal solution. The teacher-counsellor’s demeanor is ALWAYS accepting and non-punitive. This style encourages the student to feel comfortable in expression of feelings and thus facilitates positive change.

There are five basic responses to student commentary. The first, reflection, is the restating of the student’s comment. This may be done in the exact same terminology used by the student, the repeating of part of the comment, or by rewording the student’s statement. Reflection lets the students know that you are listening and promotes continued commentary.
The second response, a leading statement or question, is designed to encourage the student to elaborate on a topic or devise a solution to a specific problem. Examples of a leading remark include: “I would like to hear your opinion”, “Tell me more about yourself”, and “What happened then”?

The third response, clarification, involves the stating of implied feelings behind a student’s verbal communication. Examples of clarification include: “You sound sad”. Moreover ‘It appears as if you are very angry at James”. Clarification helps the students to deal with the emotions which are present.

The fourth, summarization, is a review of what has been discussed thus far in your counselling session. This summary allows both participants to briefly reflect on what has occurred, view it clearly, and use it as a new starting point from which to build.

The fifth response, questioning, is a review of what has been discussed thus far in your counselling session. This summary allows both participants to briefly reflect on what has occurred, view it clearly, and use it as a new starting point from which to build.

The fifth response, questioning, is comprised of two main types: closed questions which are intended to yield brief, specific information; and open ended questions which are used to encourage the student to talk at greater length on a topic. Examples of closed questioning include: “How old is Mark?” and “Did you complete your homework?” Examples of open questioning include: “How is it going in mathematics class?” and how do you feel about losing recess?”
Rogers believed that this non-opinionated approach helps others to resolve inner conflicts and feelings which manifest themselves in undesirable behaviour. Therefore, the reduction of this inner turmoil can reduce inappropriate behaviour. This technique is useful with students who can be “reasoned with” and are seeking a solution to their problems (or just want to talk). Certainly, the student must be motivated to be involved in a therapeutic discussion. This is not a technique which can be imposed upon the student. Yet, because the student is involved in the programme and chooses the most appropriate solution, she is more likely to follow the proposed solution.

The non-test approach is also useful with students of lower intelligence levels who have accompanying speech and language problems which make their verbalizations difficult to understand. Reflection can be useful in these situations. Repeat the words that are comprehended, continuing the conversation and allowing the students to vent his or her emotions.

How to Use Non-Test Counselling
i) Arrange for a time and place which will provide privacy for your conference.
ii) If the student does not open session, use a leading statement or question to focus him/her on the topic of concern.
iii) Listen to the student in an interested, non-punitive, accepting manner. Make no judgment.
iv) Respond when appropriate, using one of the recommended techniques.
v) After the concerns have been thoroughly voiced by the student, focus him/her on finding solution for the difficulty. (e.g. ‘How will you handle this in the future?”, ‘What do you do now?” and “Have you got any ideas about how you might deal with this issue?”). Allow the student to choose the solution that is best for him or her.

COUNSELLING AND TESTING – testimonies from FHI
FHI is celebrating a great achievement: more than 1 million clients have been counselled, tested and received results from its HIV counselling and testing (CT) programmes in Nigeria. FHI thus achieved one-quarter of the Nigerian government’s target of reaching 4 million people with counselling and testing services by 2009.
Of the 1 million, 47,755 were HIV – positive. Of these, almost two-thirds – 30, 292 or 63.5 percent were females and 17,459 (36.5 percent) were males. In addition, 3,422 children under 14 testing positive – 1,900 males and 1,522 females.

Counselling and testing are critical weapons in the fight against HIV and AIDS. Through these services, people who are HIV positive are identified, counselled and staying on healthy and avoiding transmission to others, and referred to antiretroviral treatment (ART) and other crucial services, including those that effectively prevent mother-to-child transmission of the virus. Currently, FHI/Nigeria has put 23,125 persons on ART in 52 facilities in 22 states.

More about FHI /Nigeria CT Programme
The landmark number of 1 million was achieved in October, 2007, largely due to the Global HIV/AIDS Initiative Nigeria (GHAIN) Project. FHI implements GHAIN’s counselling and testing program, which is now the largest of its kind in the country, operating in 22 of Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
GHAIN operates in support of the Government of Nigeria, and is funded by the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief through UNSAID. FHI leads two other smaller counselling and testing Programmes, one funded by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and one in the Niger Delta that is funded by the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria.

Donor support made the achievements and scale-up of the counselling and testing program possible but credit for its success is also due to strong , collaborative partnerships with more than 180 organizations, public, private and faith based, and at community, state and national levels.

SCALDING UP FROM 7,000 TO 1,000,000
In Nigeria, the number of FHI-Supported counselling and testing sites now stands at 185, up from 34 in 2004. The programme is poised to increased coverage to 300 sites and expands to other states by 2009.

Year
FHI-supported sites
Clients receiving results
2004
34
6,839
2005
45
177,846
2006
100
568,693
2007(Oct.)
185
1,237,870

A range of activities contributed to these impressive increases and strengthened services. FHI/Nigeria used realistic and simple strategies to implement counselling and testing programmes – for example, non – laboratory personnel are trained to perform the tests and use rapid kits that are not cold-chain dependent.
The use of mobile units has also contributed significantly to increasing uptake and reducing AIDS related stigma. Though mobile services started barely two years ago, they now enlist about 20 % of all counselling and testing clients. The attractive tents that the units used attract large crowds, as does the convenient of cost-and travel free access to test results.

HOW A LOGO AND A FORMER PRESIDENT INCREASED UPTAKE.
In collaboration with the national government and other stakeholders, FHI/Nigeria developed the heart-to-heart logo that now marks each counselling and testing sites in the country with a “seal of approval”. The logo also appears on national media messages that encourage people to go for counselling and testing.

To foster ownership, coordination and standardization, FHI handed this logo over to the government, which encourages its use by all partners and organizations providing counselling and testing services. The distinctive and instantly recognizable logo not only signals the availability slogan, “we listen, we care,” promises that clients will meet discreet, friendly providers in stigma free setting.

President Olusegun Obasanjo launched the logo at the 2005 World AIDS Day commemoration. The following year, he marked the day by being publicly tested for HIV. That the test was administered by FHI/Nigeria’s Association Director of HIV Counseling and Testing Simon Cartier testifies to the program’s national contributions and technical excellence.

Cartier attests that this singular act increase uptake of counselling and testing services. Policy makers and opinion leaders took note, and governors in different parts of the country took turns being publicly tested.

WORKING WITH THE GOVERNMENT OF NIGERIA.
On a day-to-day basis, FHI/Nigeria’s counselling and testing programme directly supports and works closely with two arms of the government that coordinate and implements HIV/AIDS related activities throughout the country: the National Agency for the Control of AIDS and the National AIDS/STI Control Programme.

Through its work with these bodies, FHI supported Nigeria’s efforts to create national VCT guidelines and a training curriculum, as well as to establish four VCT training centres. FHI/Nigeria later helped the government formulate its scale-up plan, provided technical assistance to provide VCT services at primary health centres, and helped the government develop VCT monitoring and evaluation tools that are now used nationally.

Cartier says that the “good working environment and support from the government” should be credited for the dramatic increase in the number of VCT clients over the past three years. He added, “FHI/Nigeria has enjoyed an excellent relationship with Nigeria, thereby providing better opportunities for the programme to succeed”. In turn, this relationship and the arrival of the million counselling and testing clients in Nigeria would not have occurred without the commitment, unstinting effort, teamwork, resilience and creativity of FHI/Nigerian’s staff.


CONCLUSION
Confidentiality, counsellor preparation, computer testing and client involvement are all issues within the ethical realm. Ultimately, test use by counsellors must be seen as an adjunct to the entire counselling process. Test results provide descriptive and objective data which help the counsellor to assist clients better in making the choices that will positively affect their lives. In order to make the best use of available tests in a counselling relationship, the process of testing and the issues which surround the process must be well examined.

References
Anastasi, A. (1988). Psychological testing 96th Ed.) New York: Macmillan.

Corey, G. Corey, M.S. & Callanan, P. 91984). Issues & Ethics in the helping professions (2bd Ed.) Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole.

CRONBACH, l. j. (1979). Essentials of psychological testing (4th Ed.)New York: Harper & Row.

Goldman, L. (1971) Using tests in counselling (2nd Ed.) Pacific Palisades, CA: Goodyear Publishing.

Phelps, W. R. (1974). Communicating Test results: A training guide. Final Report. Springfield, VA: National Technical Information Service. (ED 134 853).

Thompson, D. L. (1986). Using microcomputer-based assessment in career counselling. Journal of Employment Counselling, 23 (2), 50 -56. (EJ 333 980).

Tinsley, H.E. A., & Bradley, R. W. (1986). Test interpretation. Journal of Counselling & Development, 64 (7), 462-466. (EJ 333 980).

Underhill, J. (Ed). (1975). Skills for adult guidance educators. Package 11: Selecting assessment instruments. Portland, OR: Northwest Regional Educational Lab. (Ed 192 141).

HOW WRONG PRACTICES OF PARENTS, MAKE THE GUIDANCE COUNSELLOR’S WORK IN SCHOOL DIFFICULT.

INTRODUCTION

According to McDaniels & Hummel, (1984) Authorities in psychology and career development believe that parents are the most essential factor in the formation of children's personalities and self-concept, and that career choices can be regarded as the "implementation" of these qualities.
The first social experiences of a child are provided by the family. The parents and others within the family provide the models for the child to follow, Hopson and Hayes, (1972). It is a well know fact that parent’s hold on their children far exceeds any other segment of the society. No matter how well a school takes care of its student, parents remain the cardinal point or the most important factor in the life of their children. According to Oladele, J.O (2000) there is irrefutable evidence that parents are the strongest influence on their children’s choice of career, and by proxy, every other aspect of development, and life of their children.
On the other hand, Counsellors are the students advocate; a student’s personal development and fulfillment are a counsellor’s main concern. That said, the parent, the teacher and the counsellor have a common goal as far as the welfare and development of the children are concerned, Iwuama, (1991). They are very interested in and anxious about the wholesome development of their children-mentally, physically, emotionally, socially and morally, Iwuama, (1991). In their bid to protect or manage the interest of their children the parents over-reach themselves by doing things that discourage, downgrade and affect the cousellors work negatively. In this paper we shall look at some of these practices that parents does that hinder the work of the counsellor.

CONCEPT
The parent is a member of a family. It is a person’s father or mother. Super, (1963) describes the family as a social, psychological, and economic entity. It is a social entity because it contains a group of people who function as a unit. It is psychological entity because each one of its members has needs, feelings, and attitudes which are of importance to themselves and to the family and it is an economic because it provides a means of direction for their children.
A school counselor is a person who is specially trained to help students realize their full potential as unique individuals. Ikeotuonye, (1984) describes a counselor as an expert in psychological education and quoted Shertzer and Stone as saying that counsellor is responsible for developing and implementing learning processes designed to facilitate self development.
They are available to help students make decisions, and provide an atmosphere to discuss personal feelings and explore alternatives. They help the student to learn about herself and develop a positive self-concept. Another way a counselor helps students is through referral. If they are unable to help in a particular situation, they will refer students to someone who can.
A counselor makes every effort to be non-judgmental, and to create an atmosphere where students can grow and develop in positive ways.
In other words, when the pressures of life, such as selecting subjects, looking for a career, or just needing someone to talk to, the first line of defense is a school counselor.
According to Iwuama, (1991) Two major factors, influence the level of which parent and counsellor work together;
(1) The socio-economic level of the parent or the community.
(2) The nature of the family or community.

Most parents in the rural areas are illiterate persons of low socio-economic level and may not value the services of a counsellor in the school. They are more disposed to leaving the education of their children completely in the hands of the school, resulting in less parent-counsellor relationship. Iwuama, (1991) Also attitude to education vary with ethnic group, religion and socio-economic status. Hopson and Hayes, (1987)
In an urban area, it is not the same because of high level of education and awareness. Parents tend to play more roles in the children education and wellbeing. Oladele, J. o. (2000) and Iwuama, (1991)

WRONG PRACTICES OF PARENTS
1. Career Choice
Career choice is one area where parent’s hold on their children is phenomenal. Choosing a course of study can be a Herculean task with the interference of a parent which has a predetermined plan of what the child will do or become. It can also be an obstacle to vocational choice of the students, and to the overall guidance services provided by the counsellor and the school. On the parents part, Oladele, (2000) enthused that it is a case of who plays the piper calling the tune.
Some parents may not understand the value of education or even career planning of their children thereby posing a hindrance, others have inappropriate ambitions for their child. They fail to take into consideration the abilities; attitudes and interest of their child so do not support realistic educational and career plans of their children in conjunction with their teachers and career officers.

Factors influencing parents wrong practices in career choice
Religion:
Some religion are not comfortable with certain vocations, Stetler, (1951) and Lanski, (1961)And so parents try to discourage their children from taking up such vocations even if they liked and will do well in them. A case of a man who wanted his son to read Islamic Religious Knowledge (IRK) instead of medicine irrespective of the fact that the child likes medicine and is an exceptional science student.

Prestige or Ego:
Some parents out of their ego, personal gains and what people will say push their children into vocations irrespective of what the counsellor might think or say.

Family history
Some families have a history of a particular vocation in some, the first born must carry on the family tradition of that particular vocation for instance Rotimi Williams is a family of lawyers, Dafinone made the Guinness book of records as a family that all the members are accountants. So coming from such a family one might be forced to practice the family profession.

Ethnic group
Some ethnic groups are known for a particular vocation this determine the attitude of some parents to career choice of their children irrespective of a child’s learning and a counsellor’s talk. Stetler, (1951) Generally, it can not be overemphasized that for children to enter the right vocation, parents should not impose their own wish on the decision facing their children Oladele, (2000) Hurley D. and Thorp J. (2002)

2. Advice
If the school informs the parent about a matter, they will advice their children better since children normally turn to their parents for advice. Uninformed parents may offer poor guidance and this is not good since their advice tends to appear better to them than other people advice.
Moreover, parents determine the way advice is used. If the parent encourage the child to use an advice it will be used otherwise it will not be used.

3. Attitudes towards examination and qualifications

Parent’s attitude towards examination and qualification plays a part in enhancing the child’s performance. Oladele, (2000) said that if parents regard them as irrelevant, their child’s success will be limited. Some parents hardly have time to assist in doing their children’s home work or even allow attend tutorials for those taking external examinations.
On the other hand, too much pressure and anxiety can have the same effect, for instance some parents reduce the child to a nervous wreck by saying, ‘if you don’t pass your exam you are a failure’ some go to the extent of bribing teachers so their children to pass exams. There is need for a thorough but stress-free approach to passing exams.

4. Supporting Guidance Programme in the school
Parents are supposed to support guidance programme in the school both morally and financially. They could contribute toward the organisation of career seminar, day, or week. Iwuama, (1991) Most parents do no know the services provided by Guidance Counsellors and so do not support them. They also do not use their experience of what is going on in the society to help in the development of Guidance services.

5. Lack of time
The change that has occurred in the family where both parents are always out in pursuit of daily wages due to the state of our economy, and the present world economic meltdown, most children don’t get to see their parent neither spends time with them to be counselled at home. According to Iwuama, (1991) parents should provide counselling at home, they should give vocational, educational, emotional and social informational service to their children. Nevertheless, some parents do not have the time, nor have the information to give thereby leaving everything entirely in the hand of the counsellors. Hurley & Thorp (2002

6. ROLE MODELS
According to Iwuama, (1991) parents are supposed to serve as role models, but some parents are not. Some parents are involved in substance abuse, cultism, violence, cheating and other social vices, so influencing their children negatively. The re-enforcements they need at home for good behaviour is lacking thereby ruining all the effort of the counsellor who might be interested in correcting a deviant behaviour.

7. Teenage pregnancy
In some traditions girls are expected to give birth to a child or two before marriage, these encourages a child to be promiscuous no matter what the Counsellor says or advices, chances are that the child will be a teenage parent.
8. Provision of Necessities
When a child do not have the basic necessities such as text books, money, uniform, reading table, food, shelter and clothing how can he or she function well? Some parents fall short of leaving their children bare which will hamper the objective of counselling which is relieving the students of stress. Iwuama, (1991)
9. Discipline
The word discipline, which comes from the root word disciplinare—to teach or instruct—refers to the system of teaching and nurturing that prepares children to achieve competence, self-control, self-direction, and caring for others. Howard, B.J. (1996) Some parents do not discipline their child while others discipline excessively. Though spanking remains the main component of correction to deviant behaviour in Nigeria, American Academy of Pediatrics and counsellors recommends that parents be encouraged and assisted in the development of methods other than spanking for managing undesired behaviour. Larzelere, R.E (1996) Spanking is no more effective as a long-term strategy than other approaches, Roberts and Powers (1990) and reliance on spanking as a discipline approach makes other discipline strategies less effective to use. Wilson and Lyman (1982)
Some of other methods are listed below;
1. Time-Out or Removal of Privileges
2. Promoting Optimal Parent-Child Relationships and Reinforcing Positive Behaviors
3. Rewarding Desirable or Effective Behaviors

SUGGESTED WAYS TO IMPROVE PARENT’S ATTITUDE

· Constant consultation, meetings should exist between the counsellor and the parents. Circulation of a guide to the objectives and a description of the career program in the school should be carried out. Hopson and Hayes (1987) opined this because, however nice a school’s career programme is, it cannot succeed without the full co-operation of the Parent.
· Parents should be made to understand the implication of a wrong attitude to their children’s self actualization. A parent should have his / her mind reconstructed through conferences and meetings. Through these avenues they will understand that the ultimate is not prestige, money or power but job satisfaction and personal fulfillment for their children which stems from putting a child where his ability, aptitudes and interest lies. With these positive attitudes, they can also influence their children to have positive attitude to career choice.
· Parents should be encouraged to have a positive attitude towards exams and qualifications. They should know it’s not a do or die thing. They should not reduce the child to a nervous wreck or offer bribe.
· Because of the negative consequences of spanking and because it has been demonstrated to be no more effective than other approaches for managing undesired behavior in children, parents are encouraged to use methods other than spanking in response to undesired behavior.

Conclusion
The wrong practices of parents that make the counsellors work difficult can be reduced if not completely stopped. This is because most parent want the best for their child and therefore if made to understand the implications of there negative practices would want to do anything to help the progress of their child. Therefore, concerted efforts on all the people involved should be made through conferences, meetings, papers and other means of constant contact with the parents.


REFERENCES
Hopson, B. and Hayes, J. (1972) Careers Guidance: The role of school in vocational Development. Heinemann Educational Books Ltd., London
Howard B.J. (1996) Advising parents on discipline: what works? Pediatrics. 98:809-815
Hurley D. and Thorp J. (2002) Career Guidance and Decision-Making Among American Youths. Ferris State Univ, Career Institute for Education and Workforce devt.
Ikeotuonye, A.I. (1984) Guidance for schools: An Introduction. Hudahuda publishing company, Zaria
Iwuama, B.C. (1991) Foundations of Guidance and Counselling Emba Printing and Publishing Co.Ltd. Osha
Larzelere R.E. (1996) A review of the outcomes of parental use of nonabusive or customary physical punishment. Pediatrics. 824-828
Oladele, J.O. (2000) Guidance and Counselling a functional approach Johns-Lad Publishers, Lagos
McDaniels, C. and D. Hummel. (1984) Parents and Career Education Journal Of Career Education 10(4) 225-233.
Roberts M.W. and Powers S.W. (1990) Adjusting chair time-out enforcement procedures for oppositional children. Behav Ther. 21:257-271
Wilson D.R, Lyman R.D. (1982) Time-out in the treatment of childhood behavior problems: implementation and research issues. Child Family Behav Ther. 4:5-20

Nigeria's Irresponsible Leaders

On coming in contact with American leaders one thing strikes you. It is their love for their country, the pride with which they defend the American core values, and the arrogance they exude in asserting America’s dominance and supremacy over other cultures. I love them for that. I also love the vigor and ferocity with which America is advancing its values in other parts of the world. That is true patriotism and nationalism.

On the other hand, sit down with the so-called Nigerian leaders the discussion is entirely different. It’s always about how to get help to move public funds from Nigeria to safe heavens abroad, where to buy luxury items, and then where to find beautiful young women for personal gratifications. I dislike the daftness, outright stupidity, and arrogance with which they do that. Whoever thought that these crops of so-called leaders have the capacity to move Nigeria forward needs to think again.

I questioned the morals behind the establishment of the various vigilante groups like the disbanded ‘Bakassi Boys’, Odua People’s Congress’ etc, that specialized in hacking off the body parts and killing of petty criminals for stealing empty purses or bag of rice. Surprisingly these death squads were established by state politicians who, thanks to Dr. Mrs. Ngozi-Okonjo Iweala (former Minister of Finance), and Malam Nuhu Ribadu of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, are the real criminals in Nigeria; yet they enjoy immunity from prosecution and protection by law enforcement agencies.

Which Governor in Nigeria has the moral impetus to condemn youths who have taken to crime such as robbery, fraud, and prostitution for survival? I once watched a state governor giving a morale dose to youths during a university graduation ceremony. I was laughing to myself. What a hypocrite!!

However, on the recent revelations by the EFCC on the shameful looting of our national treasury by politicians, what is lacking is the outrage by the public that you will have in countries like the United States of America. Rather what we are seeing is an attempt to trivialize the findings by labeling it ‘tribal’, ‘witch-haunting’, ‘political victimization’, etc, by the same down-trodden public.

Did we all watch the prosecution of the top executives of ENRON in the USA over financial impropriety that led to the collapse of the giant energy firm and the outrage by the American public that called for their punishment? So where is the outrage in Nigeria over what these ‘protected criminals’ have done to the country? Do we enjoy seeing our girls being sold into sex-slavery in Italy, our middle class disappearing to foreign countries, our youths resorting to fraud, robbery and prostitution for lack of opportunities? Do we enjoy pregnant women and accident victims dying unnecessarily for lack of adequate medical facilities in Nigeria? How about tens of thousands of lives lost in communal and religious clashes resulting from frustration and hopelessness in the country? Why do we still cheer fraud, corruption, and eulogize criminals who brought all this on a country endowed with plentiful human and natural resources?

This leads me to ask, what are Nigeria’s core values? What legacies will the older generation leave for the younger ones? I guess the criminals in office don’t have to bother because we have an irresponsible followership that improvises ways to adapt to poverty and suffering rather than lead a revolt against the forces that put them in the condition of squalor, and abject poverty.
But make no mistakes, God has a judgment day, surely there is a day of reckoning for these criminals. Look around you, that judgment is no longer after death. It is happening before death these days right here on earth, where aggrieved wo(men), and outraged public are the judges.

After the ‘judgment’ then comes the horrible death of the criminals facilitated by guns they imported for suppression and stones from unfinished road contracts. Nobody should care about wooden caskets either. There will be no trees because someone has embezzled the ecological funds meant to protect the environment. We will burry them in expensive imported cars.

Developing E-Business For Small Business In Nigeria

In simple terms, E-business (doing business on the Internet) can enable small scale businesses in emerging markets gain greater bargaining power in the global economic exchange despite their limited capital, and mobility. The world economy is moving online. Today people are meeting online and eventually getting married, people who do not have the capital to establish physical stores are getting rich maintaining only online shops, small musicians who find it difficult getting producers are uploading their tracks on ‘Napster’ (http://www.napster.com/choose/index.html) to be downloaded by millions of people around the world, even politicians are using video-sharing tools like ‘Youtube’ (http://www.youtube.com/) to reach potential voters, etc. Therefore, the action or inaction of businesses to take advantage of e-business will determine how much they grow in the coming years.
E-readiness Ranking
In 2005, the Economist Intelligence Unit's sixth annual e-readiness rankings placed Nigeria on 58th position out of 65 countries ranked. This is not very promising considering that most investors today will be interested not only on the investment climate and infrastructure in a country but also on e-readiness indices such as national connectivity, e-leadership, information security, human capital, and e-business climate.
Interpreting E-readiness Indices
There are many indices used to measure e-readiness. The most common ones are:
Connectivity: Addresses the ability to exchange information, goods and services with the rest of the world.
E-leadership: Addresses the commitment of a national government to partner with industry leaders to create conditions favorable to electronic transactions.
Information security: Addresses issues concerning the protection of personal data, intellectual property, and effective privacy laws.
Human Capital: Emphasis on developing competent manpower including IT managers who can manage complex technology tasks, policy analysts who can make informed inputs on government policies and regulations that are capable of stifling technology growth; local content creators who can either customize or adapt global technologies to the specific business needs in the country, software and hardware engineers.
Beyond the indices, e-business requires a larger population of end-users or consumers who don’t have to understand how the technology works, but can use the technology.
How Small Businesses in Nigeria Can Benefit From E-business:
Individual Action:
Even in challenging environments such as Nigeria, small businesses can still benefit from e-business. Simple information websites with product and contact information, as a first step can open new doors for small businesses locally and internationally. Hospitality industries stand to gain more exposure and market through e-business. Tourists and people in the Diaspora are excellent target customers for hotel and tourism information and online reservations.
Group Action:
Business associations like the National Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI), National Association of Chambers Of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) can bridge the economy of scale on the technology required for e-business by setting up an online mall showcasing a pool of their members’ sites, products and services. Through the online mall people in the Diaspora may order local goods for friends or family. These associations can also help to guarantee the quality of products advertised on the site, as well as the credibility of its members to ensure fraudulent people do not seize the opportunity. Only certified members and certified products will make it on the site. ‘Ghana Mall’, for instance, sells goods made by Ghanaian artisans internationally. It also rakes in some $500 million a year in goods and cash that are sent to the country from abroad. Funds to develop such malls can be sort as grants from multilateral agencies as the World Bank Group’s Small and Medium Enterprise Department (http://www.ifc.org/sme)
Payment:
No doubt, credit card acceptance is the heart of e-commerce, but technological hindrances and doing business in local currency can drive up transaction costs. There are rules and protocols to gain access to international card association systems, which currently do not favor African countries. The amounts of online transactions originating from most African countries hardly meet the rules required by the international card associations. So there must be a way around it. Few banks in Nigeria have already started issuing credit cards. However banks need to establish special ‘Merchant Accounts’ for small businesses to enable them accept secured payments in foreign currencies processed in the same way as credit cards. Online payments will still have to go through SWIFT, encryptions, or other secured sites, as PayPal to ensure adequate security.
Shipping:
Nigerian Postal Services and international courier services are currently equipped to handle shipping to any location in the world. Business organizations can also enter into partnership agreements with these postal and shipping agencies to either enjoy special shipping rates or develop more efficient shipping methods that can guarantee delivery. In addition, the Nigerian Custom and exercise will make available list of prohibited items, duties and fees to the business organizations. One workable model is to post their personnel at the post offices for inspection of goods.
Government’s Role
As a private-sector crusader, I dislike prescribing any solution that will depend on governments. But E-commerce requires vendor credibility. Apart from technology, the greatest impediment Nigerian businesses have in embracing e-business is Nigeria’s current image as a corrupt and fraudulent nation. I wonder how many people will enter their credit card information on a site hosted in Nigeria. This is where the government should play an important role. Rather than defend or deny Nigeria’s bad image through the fable adverts of the ministry of information on international media, law-makers should strengthen existing laws to stem out corruption. People who thrive on advance fee fraud should be put out of business. It is possible! Anything that works through technology can be stopped through technology. It’s simply a digital war amongst programmers (it’s like the virus and anti-virus battle among programmers). Moreover, the world wants to see trials, prosecutions and convictions to believe the country is serious in its war against corruption.
How This Will Work
For this to work it must exist as one bundle. A customer does not want to be bothered by the backend technology and how it works. They want an easy-to-use, time-saving, front-end screen. As for now, cross-continental partnerships will play a major role in helping businesses in Nigeria cross the e-commerce threshold, as businesses will still need an international partnership to help complete orders. PeopLink (http://www.peoplink.org/EN/) offers such a partnership. They have developed free, downloadable tools to help small businesses build virtual product catalogs, which they then upload to a searchable catalog on their database, thereby offering small businesses the opportunity to benefit from collective marketing power.
One Stop Tech Support Centers:
Rather than the proliferation of cybercafés in Nigeria, people should consider going into one-stop tech support centers. For instance, in Ghana BusyInternet (http://www.busyinternet.com/) is such a one-stop IT center with a cyber café, call booths, video conferencing services, document services, web hosting, space rental and other tech support for e-businesses.

How to Avoid Ebusiness Website That Doesn’t Bring Business

Don’t be fooled into believing that all you need to do business online is a good website. Before you expend your life-savings developing a beautiful website loaded with amazing graphics, dancing buttons, chat rooms, and photos of beautiful women because your web developer told you that’s how to attract users to a site, read this article.Attracting Users Does Not Mean Selling Your Products Or Services:A shocker for many new entrants to ecommerce is the hard reality that a website does not make money. It’s only a communication tool to reach out to Internet users. Therefore, the success of an Ebusiness does not rely on a website, but rather on the business model, because it is a business.

Think about it, what drives market in a real shop on the corner of a street: the painting, furniture, beautiful sales girl, or how the store does business? Well your guess is as good as mine. It is how the store does business. Walking into a store either to tease a pretty sales girl, or admire the furniture does not result in sales if there are no good products and the workers, perhaps, lack customer service skills.Experience Matters:Most junior web-developers fresh from college are quick to unleash their programming skills with latest web-designing tools. Waoh, the site is beautiful! The real question is how much are you making from the Ecommerce site? Ebusiness is an investment like real estate, taxi business, etc. You are into it because you want to make some money. In other words, it should have a Return on Investment (ROI), and a ‘Payback Period’ because technology outdates quite easily.Your beautiful website does not make money because it’s designed to attract attention but not to make money.

A good ECommerce site is a combination of painstaking analyses by an Ebusiness Expert, good programming by a Web Developer, excellent contents by a Web Communicator, aggressive marketing strategy by a Web Marketer, and active maintenance by a Web Content Manager. Don’t throw a fit yet if you do not have the capital to invest on these aforementioned, overpriced professionals. In most cases one person or two can have a combination of the skills above. If you are a small business with a small budget one place you can find very low-cost consultants for analyses, design and content management is at http://www.exposureworld.net Use An Ebusiness Consultant Not A Web-Developer:If you want to start an Ebusiness you should be shopping for an Ebusiness Consultant rather than a Web Developer. Both are not the same. A good Ebusiness Consultant normally has an advanced degree in Management Information Systems, MBA, or Marketing, and several years or working experience in a specific industry. S(he) understands not only the technology but also the market trends. Take for instance in the medical field, there are pediatricians specializing in children medicine, gynecologists specializing on pregnant women, dermatologist for the skin, optometrist for the eye, etc. Your visit to a doctor starts with a diagnosis, or perhaps a lab visit. That determines the type of doctor you will see. If you are ill you don’t walk to a nurse to get treatment, do you? What makes you think Ebusiness is different? It is the job of an Ebusiness Consultant to recommend solutions to your Ebusiness needs, including the type of website a web developer needs to develop for you.

Research Your Product and Target Audience:A corporate website that provides information about a company is different from a dating website that match-makes people; both are different from a news website. Target audience plays an important role in website development. Who is your audience? The online market is segmented into various demographic categories. For instance a site targeting serious-minded financial professionals is quite different from a site targeting youths and teenagers. Whereas a typical teenager may be fascinated by a heavily animated site with background music and pictures of celebrities, a financial analyst who’s sharing a cubicle with another staff wishing to renew her subscription to a financial magazine during office hours may not find animations, pop-ups, and background music really funny. Take a look at this website www.imoonline.org targeting youth audience. It uses pictures of celebrities to attract and sustain the youth audience. Take a look at this small business that sells Italian goods http://www.bellaitaliaonline.com It uses Italian food recipes and travel information to attract its target audience. Leave Intro Pages For Adult Websites:Not every Internet user has all the time on Earth to wait for your flash intro page to load. If this is a business website, please skip the ‘into thing’ and take customers straight to business. Your homepage should be professional with links to other sections of the site. Some of your best products should be displayed on the homepage. A user should start doing business right from your homepage, and doesn’t have to dig in to find products.Background Music? Some Users Are In the Office:Imagine receiving a link from a friend to check out a site while you are in the office. On clicking the link you are surprised by a blasting sound of Bob Marley’s ‘One Love’ song at the background. Your office colleagues turn to you and ask ‘What’s that? Not funny at all. A typical modern office is a low-wall cubicle shared with a host of other staff.Font Color/ Size Are Age Determinant:The older your target audience, the larger should be your fonts. A typical example is a retirement home site, or pension fund management site.

The patrons are likely ageing retirees. If you are not sure who’s visiting your site, I suggest you use a standard ‘Times New Romans’, or ‘Arial’ fonts, size 12. Colors should be mild. Avoid background colors if you can, unless where research shows such a color can attract certain type of customers.Graphics? Think About Download SpeedBefore you load up your website with heavy graphics bear in mind that not everyone has the luxury of DSL, broadband, or high speed Internet. Many web-users are still stuck with simple dial-up connections. Downloading graphics can be a thorn in the flesh for dial-up users. If you think that Ecommerce is so easy that even a cave man can do it, so why would you need an Ebusiness Consultant? Well, next time you want to repaint your car try hiring a house painter instead.

After all they’re all painters and should know about paints. Tell me how it went afterwards.