They are desperate because the moment they want to register their desired names by hitting the Whois button, they find they are already taken. If this is the case, then you have an opportunity here. A golden opportunity my dear reader of owning and running your own business on the internet.

You can flip domain names. So, what do I mean by the term flipping domain names? Mmmm…This is the process of buying and reselling domain names. It is where one buys expired or premium domain names at a less price and later on sells them at a higher price thus making a profit.

The desperate buyers have no alternative other than to buy the expired domain names. This is because all good dot com domain names seem to have been taken. There are tools online that will enable you to capture the expired and premium domain names the moment they are made available for fresh registration.

Before buying them it’s good that you select only good ones. Buy those that have qualities of a good domain name because this is what your customers will be evaluating first before purchasing them from you.

I know that you may not believe that you can make money just by flipping domain names but I tell you this is not a scam. It’s real and acceptable way of making money online. It’s a continuous business as there are many offline business owners wanting their businesses to be online.

The moment you get into this business then you will be a domainer. What is stopping you from making more money online by just flipping domain names?

Do you have a computer and you really want to make some money but you don’t know how? Relax!  At last you have found a great source of information that will show you where the money lies on the internet.

The marketers know very well that their businesses cannot perform to their expectations if they don’t take their businesses on the World Wide Web.

They know that their targeted customers are found on the internet. Through it they know that they will reach thousands potential customers all over the world. So what is the results of all this? Having websites is vital for their offline businesses.

To have websites, they are required to have unique names that will identify their businesses. I mean a name that will differentiate them from their competitors. They want names that are catchy. The ones that are short and easy to recall wherever a need arises.  So, where do they get these names from?

Buying and selling products and services has become a trend in this globalize world. Internet has become a vital part of interaction between business organization, its suppliers and customers. Buying and selling products and service on internet is growing rapidly. In this changing environment, in order to compete one needs to have a good command of e-marketing strategy. Darwin theory of survival of fittest can be applied to monitor the business performance because only the organization who can adopt latest technology and expand their business wider can survive in this competing era. There are lots of third party software nowadays available in the market which reduces the complexity and provides user-friendly e-commerce services modules to solve the need of striving organizations. Credit card and debit card usage is growing on the same rate as it is a useful tool for making online purchase hence dependency on physical financial tools is replaced by digital applications.

Lots of logistics and supply chain management software are providing additional support to the ongoing traditional buying and courier delivery methods. Hence due to flexibility of usage, operation, ordering, payment and delivery e-marketing system has a key role in shaping the world to a common ground business platform. The concluding line is, E-commerce Services are the boon for those individuals or people who wants to enjoy hassle free shopping using electronic media using internet.

E-Commerce is commonly known as Electronic Marketing or E-marketing. Its a system of buying and selling items through electronic media, here, electronic media is referred to Internet and other electronic media. Latest survey reports show that the use of electronic trading is continuously growing day after day. Thousands of web portals and applications have been hosted since last two decades. Records of late 70s shows that the use of electronic media was basically used for special purpose only such as electronic fund transfer, electronic data interchange. Later on its application usage took a diverse turn when credit card and automated teller came in the market. Maximum users and usage of this type of system were reported from United States and United Kingdom in early eighties. Now the craze of online shopping is gaining rapid popularity among the youths worldwide. After the invention of world wide web by Tim berners lee in 1990 the use of electronic marketing spread like a wild fire around the world.Since,then people started using the word e-commerce for a system that electronic media for trading. Various e-commerce hosting providers had been emerged for providing e-business in which the company provides other companies whatever they need to sale, purchase and auction their products and services on the World Wide Web, including various facilities like web hosting and third party services.

Types :-

Following are the widely used terms with reference to electronic marketing. 1. Business to business, which is known as B2B. 2. Business to customer, which is known as B2C. 3. Customer to business, which is known as C2B and finally, 4. Customer to customer, which is known as C2C.

B2B :- l Trading partners are the active participants in this type of business system. The byproduct or finished product or parts are being used by other business organizations. Here one organization manufacturers some products and purchase some parts and again resell them to other business organization. This procedure of marketing is evolving quickly. This type of marketing is commonly known as Industrial marketing.

B2C :- Business organization and customers are the active players in this type of marketing. A consumer is a buyer of products that are not business related. The finished products are directly being sold to the customers world wide through electronic media especially through World Wide Web applications and portals. B2C products include goods and services such as car, bike, repairs and booking systems. We can consider all commercial websites such as eBay as its example.

C2C :- It refers to consumer to consumer marketing. Here customers are the active participants. Auction site where consumers bids price is an example of C2C marketing system. This marketing system also relies on electronic media.

C2B :- Here consumers rely on the product and service offered by the business organization. Automated teller machine is an example of customer to business marketing system.

Well, yes and no. The internet
is huge and is, of course, bigger every day. No matter how unusual the site you can bet there’ll be at least a small number of people interested in it somewhere.

But will they be willing to pay for whatever it is that you’re selling? Or if you’re not strictly in the ecommerce game, can you be sure that your pride and joy will get enough visitors to stay afloat on advertising revenue alone?

Domains cost money, server space costs money, EVERYTHING costs money.

If you don’t take the time to get to know who your prospective audience is well in advance of launching your site you may as well dig a hole at the side of the information superhighway and pour all of your money in to it.

Study the market, learn from your competitors, find your online niche and make sure that your site really stands out from the crowd. Find a good, reputable web marketing firm who can advise you and listen to what they say!

3. Flashy borders, big pictures, lots of frames, job done, yes? No!

Have you heard the story ‘the emperor’s new clothes?’ To make a short story shorter it is the tale of an emperor who relies so much on style over substance that he doesn’t even notice when some mean-spirited (but enterprising) tailors sell him a whole heap of nothing, describing it as a stylish and trend-setting new outfit that only the wisest men can see.

Is that how you want your online presence to be viewed? If it is, you may as well stop reading now.

On the modern internet, content is king! End of story. The big winners of the last decade of web evolution have been those sites that populate their sites with interesting, unique content and keep adding more and more interesting, unique content.

Think about it!

How successful would Facebook be if it was never updated by anyone?

What if the Internet Movie Database decided to stop writing about new films?

Flashy graphics, a cool URL and all the whistles and bells you can muster will draw some traffic to your site, but top quality content is what is going to keep those visitors coming back for more and, crucially, telling their friends about your amazing site.

Be interesting. Be unique. Be prolific!

And if you can’t write good copy yourself, employ someone who can!

4. No SEO, No Problem?

Imagine a clothes shop. One unlike any you have ever visited. The staff is friendly and funny and make you feel really welcome from the second you walk through the door. They have the latest fashions at unbelievably low prices, much lower than any of their competitors and they have exclusive designs from some of the biggest names in fashion.

Now imagine if that clothes shop isn’t situated in the heart of a busy city centre shopping street but is actually located at the back of a dark field, in the middle of an impenetrable forest, in the middle of nowhere with no sign pointing towards it.

How long is that shop going to stay in business?

Exactly.

A sad fact of modern internet business is that in 99.9999% of cases whatever it is that you’re doing has been done before by people with more experience and more financial backing than you. People who are more established and who know how to get people to visit their online business and who strive everyday to do so. These are the businesses that succeed, the ones that know how to play the game with the big 3 search engines and how to climb up those rankings!

Launching a site with no understanding of SEO is a guaranteed way to fail, and fail quickly.

Search Engine Optimisation is not witchcraft, but to people who don’t understand it, it can often seem like it is. Do your homework, seek advice, do some more homework, get more advice and then integrate SEO principles into the design of your site from day one, and on every day that follows!

5. There’s no such thing as bad advertising.

Want to bet? Just ask some of the many, many famous politicians who are no longer politicians but remain very, very (in)famous.

Yes, there are many ways to advertise, but some really are worth their (virtual) weight in (real) gold!

Good PPC campaigns (pay-per-click, like AdWords, those four-line adverts you see at the right hand side of Google’s results pages) are used by all the big companies and used to tremendous effect.

When Google AdWords campaigns are run well they work really, really well. And when they are run badly they are an excellent way to burn through your whole advertising budget in no time at all, and with no benefit to your business to show for it.

With AdWords, as with everything else in the online world it is vital that you don’t just jump right in with the best of intentions and nothing in the way of planning.

Do MORE homework, understand your product, know your place in the market and seek advice from a reliable source with experience of running successful PPC campaigns.

6. Small companies don’t need to worry about branding.

Hang on, I’ll stop you there!

Every business needs to think about branding. Why? Because it is your brand that communicates everything about you to everyone out there!

Google’s online dictionary says that “The branding of a product is the presentation of it to the public in a way that makes it easy for people to recognize or identify.”

Easy to recognise. Easy to identify.

Is it a coincidence that the logo for Microsoft Windows
looks like – hello! – a window?

No, it was carefully considered, probably by a team of highly skilled designers and marketers. It was then, no doubt, refined, experimented with and finally locked down as the design that we all know and see everywhere. Since then it has been used in a consistent manner to reinforce the brand. And let’s face it; there aren’t many brands that are more recognisable in the computer software business than Windows.

So take this away with you: your branding communicates everything about you to everyone out there, right? Well that door swings both ways. It’s just as easy to repel internet users as it is to attract them; in fact, it’s probably a whole lot easier.

Think about your brand from day one. Carefully design and refine it and then make sure that it is used in a consistent manner to reinforce your brand in the minds of your visitors. Research other brands and how they came about and remember that brands need to evolve. You don’t get anywhere by standing still!

7. Lights, Camera, Call to ACTION!

You’ve designed a beautiful, elegant site.

You’ve populated it with unique, interesting content that you toil over long and hard, and update regularly.

You’ve tempted a multitude of visitors to your site and in return you’re getting…

Nothing?

That can’t be right.

And it isn’t!

One of the easiest mistakes to avoid is to not let these visitors take what they want and then leave without giving you something in return.

If you’re in ecommerce, you want sales! If you’re promoting a hotel, you want bookings! If you’re trying to promote your beloved rock band you want people to pay to come to your gigs, right?

Without a clear ‘call to action’ on EVERY PAGE of your site, you can’t blame any of those visitors for taking what they want from your site and then just leaving.

Now think how many times you’ve seen examples like the following on websites:

• Click here to sign up for our free newsletter!

• Item out of stock? Click here to be notified when it’s back in stock!

• Register now for updates!

• Click here to download our latest brochure!

This seems so simple when you see it in black-and-white but you’d be amazed how many webmasters make the mistake of forgetting to call their visitors to action.

Now make sure you’re not one of them!

8. Customer Relationship Mismanagement.

So your visitors are now all obediently leaving their details so you can contact them (soon!) with the exciting news of how your site is surging ahead into the glittering future of internet superstardom?

And how are you keeping track of all those names, email addresses and the like?

In an old, dog-eared notepad?

Scrawled on napkins and thrown into a drawer?

Good luck with staying in business!

A good Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System will help you to keep track of all of your contacts. It will let you collect relevant data about them and help you to better streamline your marketing programme.

In short, a good CRM package will help you to better serve your customers and to keep attracting new ones.

And if you can’t be bothered with all of that, think about this old cliché:

Look After Your Customers Or Someone Else Will!

Still don’t think it matters?

9. “Our operators are not standing by!”

Yes, more and more business is conducted online every day.

Yes, ideally a great website (SEO optimised & marketed well!) will be all you need to become the next Donald Trump.

BUT!

As far as your customers are concerned, the best website in the world is very often no match for a friendly and well-informed voice on the phone.

Everybody expects it to take hours if not days for a corporate site to respond to an email enquiry, and THAT can be a very big turn-off when they’re choosing who they’re going to spend their money with.

That’s why even the most dyed-in-the-wool internet businesses have telemarketers, customer service advisors and other telephone operators working for them!

People will always use the phone, and there are many millions of people out there that will always prefer to pick up the phone than to send an email or fill out an online contact form.

I’m not saying that you should open a huge call centre, employing thousands of advisors in a state-of-the-art modern facility, but you should make it easy to have your customers contact you by phone, if not 24 hours a day then at least during the traditional business hours of 9 to 5, Monday to Friday.

And how would you feel if you had to repeatedly call a business whose operators don’t:

• Answer the phone in a polite and consistent manner?

• Mention the name of their business so you know you’re through to the right people?

• Speak politely?

• Listen attentively?

• Try to be helpful?

• And, most importantly, have all necessary information to hand there and then?

Exactly!

Distinguish yourself and your company by being approachable on the telephone; by being polite and helpful and by getting help and advice from a company that can oversee all this for you if it is just not practical for you to do it yourself.

Just as well you took my advice about getting a good CRM system, eh?

10. Just sit back and hope for the best!

Are you mad??

You will get NOWHERE by sitting back and simply expecting things to go your way, all the time.

You need to know who is visiting your site!

You need to know how they found you!

You need to know which pages they looked at!

You need to know to this so you can streamline your business and MAKE MORE MONEY!

But that’s all impossible, isn’t it? How could you possible know those things?

Simply, by employing a Web Analytics tool (or company) to do all that for you!

By analysing all aspects of your site’s performance you can make it perform better. Just like a coach scrutinises every pass and every tackle made by the members of his football team.

You monitor, you analyse and then you plan a way to improve.

This last point is something that you really will need help with so find yourself a good authority on web analytics and let them take the strain for you.

Only THEN will I let you sit back and hope for the best!

If you don’t plan for success you’re planning for failure.

An incredibly common mistake made by rookie ecommerce webmasters is to dive straight in and launch a site with an expensive URL long before they’ve actually taken the time plan out what their business proposition actually is!

Without a clearly defined business model and a well-formatted business plan you are inviting problems at every step of the way. Without having your company ethos, your funding details, your policies and procedures recorded clearly in black and white you really will have nothing to go on. After all, you can’t exactly show your expectations and optimism to investors or, worse, the dreaded bank manager.

Do your homework, plan your attack, refine your plan and then refine it some more. Seek help from a business professional with the formatting of your business plan and make several back-up copies!

Many website design and development companies offer ecommerce website development. If low budget is a factor, you can outsource the project to an Indian development company for quality and affordable services.

O.K, like everyone else on the Internet, I decided to try my hand at blogging. Give myself a space to share my important thoughts, as if anyone cares. Of course, I ran into problems from the start. My browser freezes if I sneeze. I obviously needed a new machine. Problem is, I’m a techno-idiot. Of course, I have the whole Internet at my fingertips, but looking at site after site to compare computers and technology is a daunting task.

Lucky for me, I ran into a site that allows me to do all of that from one location. It’s a new site, wesavemoney4u.com that allows you to browse a wide variety of merchants, who each allow you to check out a wide variety of products. I was able, just within this one site, to compare prices and capabilities on several models and brands of computers, find the one most responsive to my needs, and place my order right there. What looked to be an impossible and time consuming task was taken care of in a matter of a half an hour. Thank you wesavemoney4u.com
ou can be sure that I will go back to wesavemoney4u.com for those items as well.

Oh, and one more great thing about this site, while it does specialize in all things technological, it also features a “we recommend” page where the administrators find other great deals that they think the user might enjoy. Last time I looked, it offered great deals on athletic apparel, but it could be anything they think is just too good not to let people know about. Again, thank you wesavemoney4u.com!

Yours in blogging the ether,

Abbie

Familiarize yourself with these terms to help identify a winter storm hazard:

Freezing Rain

Rain that freezes when it hits the ground, creating a coating of ice on roads, walkways, trees, and power lines.

Sleet

Rain that turns to ice pellets before reaching the ground. Sleet also causes moisture on roads to freeze and become slippery.

Winter Storm Watch

A winter storm is possible in your area. Tune in to NOAA Weather Radio, commercial radio, or television for more information.

Winter Storm Warning

A winter storm is occurring or will soon occur in your area.

Blizzard Warning

Sustained winds or frequent gusts to 35 miles per hour or greater and considerable amounts of falling or blowing snow (reducing visibility to less than a quarter mile) are expected to prevail for a period of three hours or longer.

Frost/Freeze Warning

Below freezing temperatures are expected.

Have survival kits and emergency supplies on hand at home:

* Flashlight and extra batteries
* Portable battery-operated radio and extra batteries
* First aid kit and manual
* Emergency food and water – at least a three day supply of water and non-perishable food for each person in your household
* Manual can opener
* Essential medicines
* Cash and credit cards
* Important family documents and veterinary records
* At least one complete change of clothing and footwear per person. (Include sturdy shoes and work boots, warm coat and hat, gloves or mittens, rain gear, thermal underwear, blankets or sleeping bag)
* Extra blankets and warm clothing
* Non-clumping kitty litter to generate traction on icy surfaces
* Rock salt to melt ice on walkways
* Sand to improve traction
* Snow shovels and other snow removal equipment
* Pet Survival Kit

Suggestions and Reminders: Store your supplies in a convenient place known to all family members. Keep a smaller version of the emergency supplies in the trunk of your car. At least once a year replace batteries, update clothes, etc. Ask your physician or pharmacist about storing prescription medications, and your veterinarian about veterinary medications.

Learn about winter storm risk in your area.

Contact your local emergency management office, National Weather Service office, or American Red Cross chapter for information.

Familiarize yourself with winter storm and blizzard WATCHES and WARNINGS.

A National Weather Service (NWS) winter storm watch means a winter storm is possible in your area.

A NWS winter storm warning means a winter storm is occurring, or will soon occur, in your area.

Freezing Rain is rain that freezes when it hits the ground, creating a coating of ice on roads, walkways, trees, and power lines.

Sleet is rain that turns to ice pellets before reaching the ground. Sleet also causes moisture on roads to freeze and become slippery.

A NWS Blizzard Warning occurs when there are sustained winds or frequent gusts to 35 miles per hour or greater and considerable amounts of falling or blowing snow (reducing visibility to less than a quarter mile) are expected to prevail for a period of three hours or longer.

Frost/Freeze Warnings occur when below freezing temperatures are expected.

Understand the hazards of wind chill, which combines the cooling effect of wind and cold temperatures on exposed skin.

As the wind increases, heat is carried away from a person’s body at an accelerated rate, driving down the body temperature. “Wind chill” is a calculation of how cold it feels when the effects of wind speed and temperature are combined. A strong wind combined with a temperature of just below freezing can have the same effect as a still air temperature about 35 degrees colder.

* Service snow removal equipment before winter storm season.
* Make sure you have sufficient heating fuel; regular fuel sources may be cut off. For example, store a good supply of dry, seasoned wood for your fireplace or wood-burning stove.
* Dress for the weather.
* Wear several layers of loose fitting, lightweight, warm clothing rather than one layer of heavy clothing. The outer garments should be tightly woven and water repellent.
* Wear mittens, which are warmer than gloves.
* Wear a hat.
* Cover your mouth with a scarf to protect your lungs.

Frostbite

Frostbite is a severe reaction to cold exposure that can cause permanent damage. Symptoms of frostbite are the loss of feeling and a white or pale appearance in fingers, toes, nose, and ear lobes.

Hypothermia

Hypothermia is a condition brought on when the body temperature drops below normal due to prolonged exposure to temperatures less than 55 degrees Fahrenheit. Symptoms of hypothermia include uncontrollable shivering, slow speech, memory lapses, frequent stumbling, drowsiness, and exhaustion.

If frostbite or hypothermia is suspected

Warm the victim and seek immediate medical assistance. Never give a frostbite or hypothermia victim something with caffeine in it (like coffee) or alcohol. Caffeine, a stimulant, can cause the heart to beat faster and hasten the effects the cold has on the body. Alcohol, a depressant can slow the heart and also hasten the ill effects of cold body temperatures.

* Winterize your home.
* Insulate walls and attic.
* Caulk and weather-strip doors and windows.
* Install window covers or cover windows with plastic from the inside.
* Caulk and weather-strip doors and windows.
* Install window covers or cover windows with plastic from the inside.
* Prepare your car. Check or have a mechanic check the following items on your car:

* Hire a contractor to check the structural ability of the roof to sustain unusually heavy weight from the accumulation of snow of water, if drains on flat roofs do not work.
* Clear rain gutters.

* Antifreeze levels – ensure they are sufficient to avoid freezing.
* Battery and ignition system – should be in top condition and battery terminals should be clean.
* Brakes – check for wear and fluid levels.
* Exhaust system – check for leaks and crimped pipes and repair or replace as necessary. Carbon monoxide is deadly and usually gives no warning.
* Fuel and air filters – replace and keep water out of the system by using additives and maintaining a full tank of gas.
* Heater and defroster – ensure they work properly.
* Lights and flashing hazard lights – check for serviceability.
* Oil – check for level and weight. Heavier oils congeal more at low temperatures and do not lubricate as well.
* Thermostat – ensure it works properly.
* Windshield wiper equipment – repair any problems and maintain proper washer fluid level.
* Install good winter tires. Make sure the tires have adequate tread. All-weather radials are usually adequate for most winter conditions. However, some jurisdictions require that to drive on their roads, vehicles must be equipped with chains or snow tires with studs.
* Maintain at least a half tank of gas during the winter season.

* Purchase a separate auto survival kit for the trunk of each car used by members of your household. Purchase a winter emergency kit for each car you own.

Have some type of safe, emergency heating equipment available.

* Fireplace with ample supply of wood; small, well vented wood, coal or camp stove with fuel; portable space heaters, or kerosene heater. Note: Check with your local fire department on the legality of using kerosene heaters in your community. If kerosene heaters are used, maintain ventilation to avoid build-up of toxic fumes. Also, always refuel kerosene heaters outside and keep them at least three feet away from flammable objects.
* Install and check smoke detectors.
* Keep fire extinguishers on hand, and make sure everyone in your house knows how to use them. House fires pose an additional risk, as more people turn to alternate heating sources without taking the necessary safety precautions.

Keep pipes from freezing

* Wrap pipes in insulation or layers of old newspapers.
* Cover the newspapers with plastic to keep out moisture.
* Let faucets drip a little to avoid freezing.
* Know how to shut off water valves (in case a pipe bursts).
* Install snow fences in rural areas to reduce drifting in roads and paths, which could block access to homes, barns, and animals’ feed and water.

Use a NOAA Weather Radio with a tone-alert feature to keep you informed of watches and warnings issued in your area.

Contact your local emergency management office or American Red Cross for information on designated public shelters in case you lose power or heat.

DURING

* Listen to a battery-powered NOAA Weather Radio, or local radio or television stations for weather reports and emergency information.
* Eat regularly and drink ample fluids, but avoid caffeine and alcohol.
* Be aware of changing weather conditions.
* Move animals to sheltered areas.
* Avoid unnecessary travel. Stay indoors and dress warmly during the storm.
* Conserve fuel, if necessary, by keeping your residence cooler than normal.
* Temporarily close off heat to some rooms.
* If the pipes freeze, remove any insulation or layers of newspapers and wrap pipes in rags. Completely open all faucets and pour hot water over the pipes, starting where they were most exposed to the cold (or where the cold was most likely to penetrate).
* Maintain ventilation when using kerosene heaters to avoid build-up of toxic fumes. Refuel kerosene heaters outside and keep them at least three feet from flammable objects.
* If you must go outside, protect yourself from winter storm hazards.
* Wear layered clothing, mittens or gloves, and a hat.
* Cover your mouth to protect your lungs from extremely cold air. Try not to speak unless absolutely necessary.
* Watch for signs of frostbite. These include loss of feeling and white or pale appearance in extremities such as fingers, toes, ear lobes, and the tip of the nose. If symptoms are detected, get medical help immediately. It is best to use the buddy system in case your senses become impaired.
* Watch for signs of hypothermia. These include uncontrollable shivering, memory loss, disorientation, incoherence, slurred speech, drowsiness, and apparent exhaustion.

If symptoms of hypothermia are detected:

* Get the victim to a warm location
* Remove wet clothing
* Put the person in dry clothing and wrap their entire body in a blanket
* Warm the center of the body first
* Give warm, non-alcoholic or non-caffeinated beverages if the victim is conscious
* Get medical help as soon as possible.

Avoid overexertion, such as shoveling heavy snow, pushing a car or walking in deep snow. Overexertion can bring on a heart attack – a major cause of death in the winter. If you must shovel snow, stretch before going outside.

* Use public transportation if possible.

If you have a cell phone or two-way radio available for your use, keep the battery charged and keep it with you whenever traveling in winter weather.

* If you need to drive, let someone know your destination, your route, and when you expect to arrive.

Consider the following:

* Travel in the day, don’t travel alone, and keep others informed of your schedule
* Stay on main roads; avoid back road shortcuts.
* Be aware of sleet, freezing rain, freezing drizzle, and dense fog, which can make driving very hazardous

IF YOU GET STRANDED IN YOUR VEHICLE

* Pull off the highway. Turn on hazard lights and hang a distress flag from the radio antenna or window.
* Stay with your vehicle where rescuers are most likely to find you. Do not set out on foot unless you can see a building close by where you know you can take shelter. Be careful; distances are distorted by blowing snow. A building may seem close, but be too far to walk in the deep snow.
* Occasionally run engine and heater about 10 minutes each hour to keep warm. When the engine is running, open a downwind window slightly for ventilation and periodically clear snow from the exhaust pipe. This will protect you from possible carbon monoxide poisoning.
* Leave the overhead light on when the engine is running so that you can be seen.
* Do minor exercises to keep up circulation, but avoid overexertion. In extreme cold, use road maps, seat covers, and floor mats for insulation. Huddle with passengers and use your coat for a blanket.
* If more than one person is in the car, take turns sleeping. One person should be awake at all times to look for rescue crews.
* Be careful not to waste battery power. Balance electrical energy needs – the use of lights, heat, and radio – with supply.
* If stranded in a remote area, stomp large block letters in an open area spelling out HELP or SOS and line with rocks or tree limbs to attract the attention of rescue personnel who may be surveying the area by airplane.
* Leave the car and proceed on foot – if necessary – once the blizzard passes.

AFTER:

* Continue listening to local radio or television stations or a NOAA Weather Radio for updated information and instructions.
* Help neighbors who may require special assistance.
* Avoid driving and other travel until conditions have improved.
* Avoid overexertion.
* Follow forecasts and be prepared when venturing outside.

ANIMALS AFTER A WINTER STORM

The behavior of animals may change dramatically after any disruption in their routine. Normally quiet and friendly animals may become irritable. Monitor animals closely and only release them in safe and secure enclosures.

Animals may not be allowed in Red Cross shelters for health and space reasons. Prepare an emergency plan and know where you will take all of your animals in the event of a disaster. Temporary animal shelters may be set-up, however, these will fill rapidly. An ideal situation during disasters is to have pre-determined friend or family member that will provide a living space for your whole family, including your animals. Make sure all animals have a current identification tag, license, and vaccinations.