Today is Cyber Monday- the day retailers cater to their online shoppers with special deals like free shipping and discounted items.

Have you done any online shopping? Have you taken advantage of any deals, and if so, where did you hear about them? We loved this Newsweek article about Cyber Monday and the growing influence of social media in online and traditional shopping. Enjoy!

Let the (Online) Shopping Begin

Black Friday is old news. This year, the real retail boom will arrive on Cyber Monday.  By Nancy Cook | Newsweek Web Exclusive

Nov 25, 2009

Forget Black Friday. The real bargains this year are showing up on Cyber Monday, the first work day following Thanksgiving when people return to their offices, ignore the tasks at hand, and begin to surf the Internet in earnest for this year’s holiday gifts. Roughly 45 percent of online retailers expect their holiday sales to increase this year by at least 15 percent compared with 2008, according to the industry group Shop.org. “People view the Internet as the place to save money and find the best prices through comparison shopping,” says Scott Silverman, Shop.org’s executive director.

Online sales may be the lone sweet spot for retailers in this otherwise dismal economy. With double-digit unemployment and a foreclosure crisis that just won’t quit, consumers are expected to spend even less this season. Overall, the National Retail Federation expects consumers to spend an average of $682.74 on holiday-related gear, food, and gifts, compared with an average of $705.01 in 2008.

While traditional retailers have had their ups and downs over the last decade, online sales have risen steadily since 1999. That’s when companies such as Amazon.com, Priceline, and eBay first rose to prominence, prompting NEWSWEEK to proclaim that these three businesses had set out to “change the way you shop.” Since then, the sector has grown from a $4.6 billion industry to a $31.5 billion industry. “The story of the last decade is that there has been consistent 20 percent growth,” says Ken Cassar, vice president of industry insights for the Nielsen Co., about online shopping.

That growth may have something to do with online retailers’ willingness and ability to pass on their reduced overhead costs in the form of discounts to consumers. Roughly nine out of 10 online businesses recently surveyed by Shop.org planned to offer some type of promotion for Cyber Monday in the form of one-day sales, free shipping, and “deal of the hour” sales. Roughly 57 percent plan to offer free shipping this year; Target started waiving shipping and handling fees on Nov. 1, a full two weeks before the promotion normally starts. This year, about 15 percent of all retailers will no longer require consumers to spend a certain amount of money to qualify for free shipping.

For their part, traditional retailers are increasingly making use of online social-networking sites like Twitter and Facebook to drive foot traffic and boost in-store sales. Staples and Toy “R” Us are letting followers know about special deals on a daily basis. Toys “R” Us sent its Facebook fans an announcement on Wednesday—a full two days before the “holiday”—that detailed its Black Friday specials. Other stores such as Best Buy, Gap, and American Eagle are using these sites to hand out coupons, much the way they once relied on grocery-store or newspaper circulars. “Social media stimulates sales and creates demand,” Silverman says. “It’s a great way to communicate with your customers.”

From the retailers’ perspective, the best part about online holiday shopping is that its success is not measured on a single day. The results from Black Friday are often used to forecast consumers’ moods about the entire holiday season or, worse, the first quarter of the following year. By comparison, online holiday shopping remains steady throughout the month of December, says Andrew Lipsman, director of industry analysis for ComScore, a research firm. If there is a peak with holiday online sales, it happens over an entire workweek, usually between Dec. 10 and 15, he says.

Even with this cheerleading over online sales, retail researchers acknowledge that e-commerce will never really usurp Black Friday. Online retail spending year-round—including spending on food, cars, and gas—still accounts for just 8 percent of retail sales overall, says Lipsman. “People like to get out into a store,” he says. “Black Friday is [still] a cultural phenomenon.”

Rfid en Verichip 08 – Het verhaal achter de goedkeuring van Verichip!

Eigenlijk is het te fantastisch voor woorden.

Dat ik bij toeval struikelde over deze videoclip op youtube!

Zeker nadat ik dacht zowat alles over Rfid- en Verichip te hebben gezegd wat er te zeggen viel!

Ja, deze video van YouTube en de websites die ik daarna tegenkwam toen ik over deze nieuwe informatie surfte spreken boekdelen.

“VERICHIP – Tommy Thompson Supports FDA Approved RFID chip”

Tommy G. Thompson is de man die vanuit de “FDA” de implanteerbare Rfid versie “Verichip” heeft goedgekeurd!

Hij vertrok 2 weken na de goedkeuring van Verichip implantaten bij het FDA.

Ik denk dat bij u al een lampje gaat branden.

Binnen 5 maanden kreeg Tommy G Thompson een mooie TOP functie bij Verichip en Applied Digital Solutions zelf.

Na 2 jaar bij Verichip te hebben gezeten, schijnt hij nu bij “Pure Bioscience Inc.” te zitten.

Bovendien kreeg hij een mooie compensatie in de vorm van geld en aandelenopties!

De “schijn” van belangenverstrengeling is hier overduidelijk aanwezig!

Waarom wordt dit niet onderzocht?

In ditzelfde videofragment komt ook Scott Silverman (de CEO van Applied Digital Solutions (tegenwoordig Digital Angel)) aan het woord.

Hij beweert dat Verichip volledig op “vrijwillige basis” wordt geïmplanteerd.

Tsja… Wie zullen we het eens gaan vragen?

24 augustus 2006 – VeriChip wil ‘dog tags’ soldaten vervangen door rfid-chip

Ja, die soldaten zullen wel blij zijn om met een peilzender op rond te lopen, zeker in vijandelijk gebied, kunnen ze meteen in een “lijkenzak” afgevoerd worden?!?

29 december 2007 – Mexico to Microchip Central American Migrants!

Asielzoekers en Arbeidsmigranten zullen ook maar wat blij zijn dat zij constant gevolgd worden?!?

2008 – Doctor alleges plans underway to “Microchip” Newborns in U.S. and Europe!

Natuurlijk vinden die pasgeboren baby’tjes het maar wat fijn om op zo jonge en kwetsbare leeftijd al met kankerverwekkende peilzendertjes rond te lopen (wat niet weet, dat niet deert en wie zwijgt stemt toe) is waarschijnlijk de redenering van de overheden die dit soort “criminele praktijken” oogluikend toestaan?!?

11 oktober 2007 - Verburg: alle honden een chip!

Hoor ze eens janken van plezier omdat ze een chipje geïmplanteerd hebben gekregen?!?

13 januari 2008 – Britse regering wil gevangenen chippen!

Ook de gevangenen mogen zich zeer “geëerd” voelen om zo’n “kolere” peilzender te dragen, door hun crimineel gedrag hebben ze immers hun rechten op het spel gezet?!?

Read this blog post here

Today I read an inspiring article on CNN about Scott Silverman. About twenty three years ago Scott was on the verge of stepping out of an open window on the 44^th floor. His life was a shambles. He was depressed and despair had taken hold of him. Fortunately, a coworker stepped in and he didn’t go through with it. Today, that same Scott Silverman runs a program called “Second Chance” in San Diego California. Second Chance gives people just that – another shot at life. From people fresh out of Rehab to people fresh out of prison, it teaches them basics like how to write a resume, how to conduct a strong interview, gives them a place to live (which also gives an address so they can get a job), and what’s more, places them in an environment of positive change.

Second Chance has helped more than 24,000 individuals, partnering with local companies who make repeat hires because they’ve had such a good experience.

Remember, this is the same Scott we talked about before. A man who turned his life around so successfully, and who has made such a positive impact in the lives of so many others that last month, San Diego declared one day as “Scott Silverman Day”.

Anthony Panarella, an ex-convict who graduated from the program said “Little kids have Superman or Spiderman. I have Scott Silverman”.

Remember, no matter where your life is right now, the most powerful things before you are not obstacles, nor the events of your past, but the undeniable opportunity to change your future

Thanks Scott for being such a fine, living example of this, and thank you CNN for choosing to report so well on such an important and valuable story.

(Note: The entire CNN story can be found here http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/03/19/heroes.silverman/index.html?eref=rss_t

CNN label’s Silverman as the hero. I disagree, I think the hero was the unsung colleague who was instrumental in preventing his death, without whom Second Chance may never exist today.