Obama's popularity ratings up as US economy doing better

US President Barack Obama's approval ratings have improved and touched 50% amid people's growing optimism over the state of economy, according to a latest opinion poll.

Showing steady improvement since early December, Obama's approval ratings have reached the 50% mark thus gave him a much brighter chance of winning the presidential polls in November, according to the New York Times/CBS News poll.


This is his highest approval rating since May 2010 (excepting the brief bump he received after Navy Seals killed Osama bin Laden in May 2011), the New York Times said.

"For the first time since the election season began in earnest in the late summer, as many Democratic voters as Republicans said they were more enthusiastic than usual about voting in the 2012 presidential election," it said.

According to the NYT/CBS poll, though Obama led one-o-one against the four Republican presidential candidates, the president received poor marks on his handling of the federal budget deficit, with 59% of poll respondents expressing disapproval.

Meanwhile, a new CNN poll caught Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum - the two leading Republican presidential candidate - in a dead heat nationally. While Santorum got 34% of the poll support, Romney received 32%.

The poll also said that Santorum supporters are much more highly motivated than those backing Romney.

"The new numbers indicate a split in the Republican party that goes deeper than ideology, with signs of a gender gap and class warfare breaking out in the GOP ranks," CNN polling director Keating Holland said.

US stocks finish flat in late rally on Greece

US stocks erased losses to end little changed on Tuesday after a Greek government source said the conservative party leader was expected to deliver a letter of commitment to the country's international lenders.

A sign of Greece's commitment to the tough austerity measures demanded by euro zone leaders was a catalyst for buyers to jump into the stock market late in the session.

Euro zone finance ministers are due to hold a telephone conference call on Wednesday about a 130 billion euros bailout to avert a chaotic Greek default.

Late-day moves by stocks are often exacerbated by dealers who are hedging positions.

"There has just been no volume for the last week or so, so you are kind of able to push stocks around a little bit more," said Sam Ginzburg, head of capital markets at First New York in New York.

Bank shares, which have been the most affected by developments out of Greece, cut some of their losses.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 4.24 points, or 0.03%, to 12,878.28. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 1.27 points, or 0.09%, to 1,350.50. The Nasdaq Composite Index edged up 0.44 points, or 0.02%, to 2,931.83.

Materials and financials were the worst performing sectors after rising more than 10% for the year.

The benchmark index has encountered strong resistance in the 1,355-1,360 area.

"If we don't take out 1,360 on the S&P, the more times we try to take it out and don't, it tells you that we keep making lower highs, which increases the probability that you have your 3, 5, 7% selloff," said Ginzburg.

The S&P materials index lost 1.3% as Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold fell 3.8% to $42.96 and the S&P financial index slipped 1.1% with Citigroup off 2.4% to $32.08.

Volume was light with about 6.78 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE Amex and Nasdaq, shy of the daily average of 6.96 billion.

Economic data showed a weaker-than-expected gain in January retail sales, which was due in part to discounting in auto sales, but a rebound in an underlying measure of sales pointed to an improving economy.

The S&P retail index gained 0.3% after hitting an intraday high of 570.33, the highest level on record for the index.

Auto supplier BorgWarner Inc <BWA.N> added 0.7% to $79.41 after posting a fourth-quarter profit that beat Wall Street expectations on a 16% sales increase.

Accoring to Thomson Reuters data through Tuesday morning, of the 361 companies in the S&P 500 that have posted results, 63% have topped expectations, tracking below recent quarters through this stage in earnings season.

Micron Technology shares rose 6.2% to $8.34 after positive comments from analysts at JPMorgan and Oppenheimer. The stock is up 32.6% this year.

Moody's Investors Service put Britain's Aaa credit rating in jeopardy for the first time late on Monday. The agency also cut its outlook on the top-tier ratings of France and Austria and downgraded the ratings of six euro-zone nations, including Spain and Italy.

Data from Germany suggested Europe's bulwark economy is picking up its pace. The ZEW economic think tank's monthly poll of economic sentiment jumped to 5.4 from minus 21.6 in January, well above the consensus forecast in a Reuters poll of analysts.

Apple plans to announce a new version of its iPad in the first week of March, a Wall Street Journal report said, citing a person briefed on the matter. Apple shares rose 1.4% to $509.46 after closing above $500 for the first time on Monday.

Declining stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by 1,888 to 1,088, while on the Nasdaq, decliners beat advancers 1,557 to 958.

Kingfisher Q3 loss widens by 75%, costs mount

Kingfisher Airlines reported a 75% wider net loss in the quarter to end-December from a year earlier, as the ailing carrier continued to feel the pinch of high fuel costs, a weaker rupee and fierce competition.

Kingfisher lost Rs 444 crore in the third quarter ended December, 2011, 74.8% more than a loss of Rs 254 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago.


Debt-laden Kingfisher, controlled by liquor baron Vijay Mallya, is around a quarter-owned by banks and its top lender State Bank of India has refused to lend more without a fresh injection of equity.

"Steep depreciation of the Indian rupee coupled with consistently high crude oil prices has led to a challenging quarter for the Indian aviation industry," Kingfisher said in a statement on Thursday.

Kingfisher, named after country's most famous beer owned by its parent company, has seen planes grounded for safety shortcomings and faced immense investor scrutiny on its plans to revive the airline.

Shares in Kingfisher, which has never made a profit, have dropped almost 60% since the beginning of last year, shrinking the airline's market value to around $270 million (Rs 1,330.96 crore).

The airline, which said last month it was in talks with Hong Kong-based distressed debt firm SC Lowy Financial for a possible investment, this month put on hold plans to join the global oneworld alliance.

A government panel this month approved a plan to allow airlines to directly import jet fuel, seen easing fuel costs for troubled carriers, while India is expected to soon allow foreign carrier to own up to 49% in local airlines.

TCS C Interview Questions - What Questions You Can Expect?

Are you a fresher preparing for TCS placements? You would now be knowing that the company gives much importance to questions from C during its placements and interviews. Being prepared with C questions is very essential to get placed in the company.

Why You Should Prepare Thoroughly For C Interview Questions?

C questions are quite different from other aptitude questions as they require good knowledge in programming concepts. Since C is the most widely known computer language amongst freshers, most companies opt to include programming questions from C.

How TCS C Interview And Placement Questions Are Different?

As far as TCS is concerned, the questions from C are not on the toughest side. In fact you would not be tested with syntax or in depth knowledge in C programming concepts. Instead the major focus of the questions would be to test your analytical skills and skill in developing algorithms for solving problems.

Some Sample C Interview Questions:

As I had mentioned in the previous paragraph, you would tested on algorithms and you might be asked to develop an algorithm using C on the spot to solve a puzzle like sudoku.

Another common C interview question you can expect would be to debug errors in a given program. Again the importance will not be on the syntactical errors. Instead there would certain logical errors like infinite loops or divide by zero exceptions deliberately created in the existing code. You will have to figure out the errors. Occasionally you might be asked to correct the code as well.

TCS Campus Recruitment 2011 - How to Prepare?

TCS or Tata Consultancy Services Ltd is of India's leading Information Technology consulting services and business process outsourcing company. They hires freshers in large numbers each year from premier engineering and technical institutions across the country. Attractive salaries, great work environment and excellent growth prospects attract freshers.

How to prepare for campus recruitment? TCS is known to put freshers through a rigorous campus recruitment process to hire only the best candidates. Minimum eligibility criteria for applying is aggregate of 60% marks in class X, XII, graduation and post graduation. First round of recruitment process is a tough online test where students are tested on their English language, critical thinking and logical reasoning skills. They hardly change its question patterns and studying up on previous year's question papers and other sample papers is vital preparation for this round. After clearing the first round candidates are given a presentation and talk on the company and its services. You should listen carefully to the pre-placement talks for you can get vital information regarding the company and this can really help you during the interview. Next is the technical interview round where candidates are thoroughly tested on their technical knowledge and problem solving skills. In order to clear this crucial round you must prepare one or more of your core subjects in detail. Next come management and HR rounds where your communication, leadership and teamwork abilities are tested.

Good preparation is vital for cracking TCS online test and technical interview rounds. Best way to gain an edge over others is to download placement papers e-book for this will provide you with all the probable questions and answers. Placement papers e-book will help you to come prepared for anything the recruiters throw at you.

TCS Freshers Recruitment 2011 - How to Find and Apply?

The last year of college is really spent in search of a good job. We all know that the key to success and a good life is a lucrative job with a reputable and well known company.

If you are a fresher in IT sector, then there really is no need to explain to you the importance of doing well at campus recruitment to land a good paying job. TCS or Tata Consultancy Services Limited is India's leading IT consulting Services Company that also happens to recruit large numbers of freshers every year. The company carries out campus recruitment drives periodically at all major engineering and technical education institutes in the country and hires only the best of the pool.

TCS has a global presence and offers great growth prospects for its employees. No wonder it is the cherished dream of many to get a job with the company. Keep careful track of all recruitment announcements in all major newspapers and online job portals. You may even subscribe for job alerts so that you will be informed of all latest recruitment information regarding job vacancies for freshers. You can visit the website from time to time to check out any new announcements. Candidates can even send resumes and apply for jobs through online submission of form. Short listed candidates will be called for written online examination. On clearing online test round the candidates will be called for technical interview round. Successful candidates have to then pass HR interview round before being welcomed into the TATA family.

Preparation is the key to success at any endeavour, so download sample question sets and begin your studies now. Brush up on both technical knowledge and English language proficiency for you will be tested on these skills mainly.

TCS Careers For Freshers

India has a well established Information Technology services business in India lead by Tata Consultancy Services which is the largest software exporter in India. TCS employs freshers for most of the projects. It conducts a TCS freshers recruitment drive and TCS freshers walking for recruiting freshers.

The updated TCS freshers salary package is around 3.15 lakhs (as on June 2010) and it may change anytime. A lot of TCS fresher openings and TCS fresher job details will be posted as advertisements in the leading news papers in India. Once you find such advertisements you have to apply for the tata consultancy services fresher post and start preparing for the test and interview by collecting tata consultancy services freshers interview questions and tata consultancy services freshers aptitude questions from the internet.

Once you get shortlisted in the interview, TCS gives a specific joining date, where you have to report to the intimated "ILP - Initial Learning Program" centre and you have to join the freshers training program. Once you successfully complete the TCS training program, you will be posted in a particular office. You will be asked for preference location of posting and if any vacancy is available in that particular city, you will be given preference and if not, they will post you in a particular location where current vacancy is available for the projects. In that case, TCS gives preferences to girls to post them to their nearest home town. Tata Consultancy Services has offices all over in India including Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Gurgaon etc.

TCS Openings in Bangalore

TCS is one of the largest software exporters in India and it has offices all over India. The main office is located in Bangalore which is considered as the Silicon Valley of Asia. A lot of TCS Bangalore openings are available for the candidates aspiring for TCS it jobs as well as TCS Bangalore BPO jobs.

The TCS office in Bangalore is located at:

Tata Consultancy Services

Salarpuria G.R Tech Park

K.R. Puram, Bangalore.

Some of the candidates prefer to join Tata Consultancy Services in Bangalore because of the opportunities that are available in plenty in Bangalore. As it is one of the big offices in India, a lot of TCS Bangalore careers options is available for the candidates to switch from one technology to other technology. As Bangalore is called as "Silicon Valley of Asia", you can get opportunity to switch between various information technology companies of the world and you can get to know more details on a lot of IT job openings in Bangalore.

Tata consultancy services in Bangalore recruits freshers as well as experienced candidates. The freshers are trained through the "Initial Learning Program" and are posted in the projects directly or may be kept in bench for a time period. The projects may be based at United States of America or United Kingdom or internal projects. It depends on the demand for engineers at the time of joining. TCS also recruits experienced persons for their projects in Bangalore office. A lot of experienced talent pool is available in Bangalore as a lot of companies are present in Bangalore. So TCS prefers to recruits more experienced p

TCS Openings For Freshers

Tata Consultancy Services is the software company owned by Tata Group of Companies, Headed by Mr.Ratan Tata. It is the largest software exporter in india. They are the largest employment provider for information technology sector.

TCS mostly recruits freshers for its projects. Currently TCS Recruitment 2010 is going on where it is recruiting freshers for the year 2010. You can find more details on the TCS freshers opening in TCS careers website.

You have to collect TCS interview questions and TCS aptitude questions and answers from the internet and prepare well to clear the aptitude test.

Tata consultancy services also has employees abroad. A lot of tata consultancy services america jobs openings are also available for the suitable candidates. If you want to work in the business process outsourcing jobs, then tata consultancy services bpo is available for you where you can get the job. You have to prepare well for TCS bpo questions well and then appear for the same.

Once you clear the first aptitude test conducted, then you will be selected for the technical interview and hr interview. Technical interview will be conducted mainly in the areas mentioned in the resume and you can collect TCS hr questions online. The HR Questions will be generally related to your areas of interest, hobbies and other details. This HR interview is mainly conducted to check your conversation skills, logical thinking and reasoning and the way of presentation. So dress neatly when you appear for a HR Interview and present yourselves very neatly.

Telecom companies set to go for bold tariff hikes; your mobile bills to bloat 30% this year

 

NEW DELHI: Mobile phone bills of consumers will rise 20-30% this year, top executives of all leading operators said, as the country's debt-ridden telcos raise call tariffs to revive revenue growth and cut losses in the fiercely competitive sector.

The move follows the 20% increase last July, the first hike after operators slashed tariffs in 2008 as they chased new customers, but ended up eroding profits. It comes at a time telcos are staring at penalties and fines running into thousands of crores of rupees for a range of alleged violations.

Vodafone quietly raised tariffs of postpaid users in January by about 20% in Delhi and plans to extend this to other regions, with rivals set to follow suit this month. Telcos say tariffs for prepaid customers, who form 96% of users, will be raised after March.

An executive close to Bharti Airtel said a 20-30% rise in the next 12 months was the "minimum requirement for the industry to keep its head above water".

Even state-run BSNL, which did not raise rates last time, plans to increase tariffs, a top executive said.

An executive close to Reliance Communications said the industry needed higher charges to service itsRs 275,000-crore debt. "Except the top three, all operators are losing Rs 800-1,000 crore per quarter," the executive said. Uninor Managing Director Sigve Brekke told ET recently if 'incumbents increase tariffs, he would be the first to follow', adding that customers could afford higher tariffs.

India added 400 million users in the last two years, but revenues crawled 10%, and average minutes of usage per customer fell from 465 in 2007 to 350.


"Inflation has been around 9% in the last two years. The industry paid Rs 70,000 crore for 3G spectrum. These services failed to take off and costs will eventually have to be passed on," said the executive of a leading GSM operator. He said earnings from every minute of traffic had plummeted to 40-45 paise from Rs 1 in 2007.

Samaresh Parida, director, Vodafone, said government levies had raised costs. "If the government keeps on trying to extract more from us, we are left with no alternative."
 

SBI looks to expand reach in Gulf region

 

ndia's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) is looking to expand its presence in the Gulf region, a senior bank official said.

"We are there in a big way, but Kuwait is the only GCC country where we don't have a branch," Hemant Contractor, Managing Director of SBI told the Kuwait news agency, KUNA, during a visit to Belgium.

he Indian banking sector plays a very important role for trade and finance in the Gulf region and West Asia and State Bank of India (SBI) is seeking to increase its presence abroad, he said.

He said the UAE is India's largest trading partner in the Gulf and ties between the Gulf region and India are "very, very strong".

SBI recently opened two new branches in the Gulf region -- one in Saudi Arabia and one in Qatar -- as a part of its plans to expand operations abroad.

The bank is present in 34 countries across the world and has 170 branches in those countries. It has 14 branches in Europe, including 10 in the UK and one each in Belgium, Germany and France, along with a representative office in Italy.

The branch in the Belgian city of Antwerp is SBI's fifth largest branch.

Asked about the effect of ban of import of Iran oil to Europe on India's economy, Contractor said, "India does import oil from Iran in a big way and ever since the last one year this has become a major issue because of the restrictions imposed both by the US and now also the EU on import of oil from Iran.

 "So, Indian oil companies have tried to find out alternate sources of fuel supply and reduce dependence on Iran. It will involve some pain initially but I think they will have to look at other alternatives for supply of oil. They are tapping other sources in the Gulf."

ICICI Bank Q3 net rises 20% to Rs 1,728 cr

 

Country's second largest lender ICICI Bank reported a 20.2% jump in net profit for the quarter ended December 2011 at Rs 1,728 crore as against Rs 1,437 crore in the same period a year ago.

Net interest income also increased 17.3% to Rs 2,712 crore in December 2011 from Rs 2,311 crore in December 2010.


Gross net performing assets too improved to 3.82% versus 4.14% a year ago.

However, provisions fell 26.5% to Rs 341 crore from Rs 464 crore in December 2010.

The bank's stocks were trading at Rs 890 apiece, trading 4.5% up, on Bombay Stock Exchange at 1315 hours.

Anil Ambani asks PM to allocate gas for Samalkot plant

 

Anil Ambani, the Chairman of Reliance Power, has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh demanding the allocation of natural gas to the firm's Samalkot power plant in Andhra Pradesh, saying the Rs 10,000 crore unit is awaiting fuel supply to be fully commissioned.

In a January 10 letter, Ambani sought 9.6 million cubic metres per day of gas for the 2,400-MW power plant.

Reliance Power's Samalkot power plant is ready for commissioning and the meeting of the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) headed by Pranab Mukherjee should be convened soon to consider the allocation of gas to the plant, he wrote.

"It has been over 18 months since the last meeting of the EGoM in July, 2010, and many projects such as Samalkot are awaiting gas allocation for their commissioning activities," Ambani said, adding that Samalkot fulfills all requirements for gas allocation as outlined by the Gas Utilisation Policy.

Sources said the meeting of the EGoM on natural gas allocation is slated for February 14, but with output from Reliance Industries' eastern offshore KG-D6 fields dipping by over 35 per cent to less than 39 mmcmd, it would have few options other than shuffling current allocations so that the priority sector gets more gas.

The Samalkot project will be the nation's largest gas-based power project.

"We understand that there are short-term gas shortages on the supply front, hence we have also requested, in line with the Saumitra Chaudhari committee report on pooling of gas prices, that the gas allocated to non-priority sectors be reallocated to the priority sectors of power and fertiliser," he added.

Further, the company wanted all available gas for the power sector be provided to all projects on an equitable basis so that they can achieve minimum viability until supplies ramp-up.

Ambani sought "allocation of domestic natural gas by the EGoM to the Samalkot power plant so that it can be fully commissioned and operational at the earliest to reduce the power deficit in the southern region."

Also, "Available domestic gas (should) be distributed to all existing and upcoming gas based power projects on a pro-rata basis," he added.

TCS opens unit at Silicon Valley for mobility solutions

India’s largest IT services provider Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) expanded its presence in the US by setting up its Customer Collaboration Centre in Santa Clara, California.

The centre will serve as the worldwide headquarters of TCS Mobility Solutions unit which focuses on getting emerging technologies like big data, analytics and mobility to enterprises across all industries.The center will serve as the base for TCS’ Next Gen Solutions Unit.

“Silicon Valley is a perfect place for this new TCS customer collaboration center, given the match between the innovative and entrepreneurial spirit of TCS and that of the Valley,” said N Chandrasekaran, TCS’ Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director.

The launch of the new TCS collaboration center was attended by local officials including US Congressman Mike Honda and over 65 customers from the US, Canada and Europe.  The Santa Clara center is the latest addition to TCS’ growing operations across North America where it has been operating since 1979 when it established its first office in New York City.  TCS now has more than twenty offices across the region including four development centers and centers of excellence creating winning solutions that provide its North-American customers with a competitive edge in the marketplace.

TVS Motor Q3 net flat at Rs 57 cr

 

Two-wheeler major TVS Motor Company today reported 1.40% rise in standalone net profit for the quarter ended December 31, 2011, at Rs 56.53 crore.

The company had posted a net profit of Rs 55.75 crore in the corresponding period last financial year, TVS Motor Company said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The total income during the third quarter also increased by 7.02% to Rs 1,762.22 crore from Rs 1,646.65 crore in the year-ago period, it added.
During the quarter, the company's total vehicle sales rose marginally to 519,000 units from 518,000 units in the same period previous year.

The company saw its scooter sales climbing by 11.29% to 138 lakh units, while the same for motorcycle segment declined by 8.53% to 193 lakh units, the filing said.

The three-wheeler sales dipped by 11.71% to 8,899 units, it added.

However, two-wheeler exports during the three-month period went up by 23.83% to 63,700 units.

Besides, the company's Indonesian operations recorded sales of 4,033 two-wheelers, up 6.13%.

Reacting to the results, shares of the company were trading 0.98% up at Rs 51.40 apiece on the Bombay Stock Exchange during afternoon trade.

InfInfosys to invest Rs 600 cr in Indore facility

 

T major Infosys today signed an MoU with the Madhya Pradesh government for investing Rs 600 crore in its proposed unit in Indore, which will generate over 13,000 jobs.

The MoU was signed by the Secretary IT, government of Madhya Pradesh, Hari Ranjan Rao and Infosys Vice-President, Chandraketu Jha in the presence of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Industries Minister, Kailash Vijaywargiya at the state mantralaya, official sources said.

The MoU with Infosys would encourage more investment in the state, Chouhan said.
The state government has decided to provide 130 acres to Infosys on a 33-year lease. The project will be completed within five years.

The company is setting up the facility at the Super Corridor in Indore.

Facebook to file $5-bn IPO today

 

Facebook is expected to submit paperwork to regulators on Wednesday morning for a $5 billion initial public offering and has selected Morgan Stanley and four other bookrunners to handle the mega-IPO, sources close to the deal told IFR.

The company founded by Mark Zuckerberg in a Harvard dorm room in 2004 picked Morgan Stanley to take the coveted "lead left" role in what is expected to be the largest IPO ever to emerge from Silicon Valley.

The $5 billion is a preliminary target and could be ramped up in coming months in response to investor demand, IFR added.

The other four bookrunners chosen were Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital and JP Morgan, although the underwriting syndicate could be expanded later, IFR cited the sources as saying.

Facebook declined to comment on the report by IFR, a unit of Thomson Reuters. "Lead left" refers to where the top underwriter's name will appear on the IPO prospectus.

The preliminary IPO filing sets the stage for a May market of the world's largest social network, IFR reported, a coming-out party that will dwarf almost any before that, including Google Inc's $2 billion IPO.

IPO veteran clinches deal

Morgan Stanley's experience in arranging major Internet IPOs - including those of Groupon and Zynga - helped it clinch a pivotal role after an unusually secretive selection process, IFR reported.

Final pricing would not be set for several months, during which the size of the IPO could be increased should investor demand warrant it, IFR added.

The prospective IPO - expected to be one of the largest US market debuts in history - has whipped up a frenzy of investor and media speculation this month, buoying shares in social media peers from RenRen to LinkedIn and igniting fierce competition on Wall Street.

The IPO - a prized trophy for any investment bank - likely set a new standard for how low its arrangers are willing to go on advisory fees to win big business, analysts say.

Silicon Valley start-ups from Zynga and LinkedIn to Groupon and Pandora Media Inc have since last year begun testing investor appetite for a new wave of dotcoms, with mixed results.

Investors last year had warned of a second dotcom bubble inflating, after LinkedIn doubled on its debut; but the so-called over-enthusiasm has waned in recent months.

The last dotcom player to debut, Zynga, closed 5% below its IPO price during its first trading day in December.

3 Tips for Improving Your Job Search in An Uncertain Economy

Looking forward to your executive job hunt this year - or dreading it?

Spending months in job-search mode, facing a pending layoff, or reading about unemployment statistics can bring you down... just when you need the energy to tackle a challenging market.

However, you CAN change your approach, mindset, and techniques, leading to better results and a greater sense of well-being during your search.

Here are 3 solid inspirations that will move you forward quickly in your executive or professional job hunt:

1 - Realize that companies ARE hiring - and put yourself "out there" on LinkedIn.

As badly as you want to find the perfect fit in your next job, companies want to find YOU and leverage your executive skills.

Don't believe this? Run a Google search on the phrase "How to find candidates on LinkedIn." Out of the 14 million or so results, you'll see thousands of articles on recruiting.

What this tells you is that there are plenty of companies searching for your talent. Therefore, if you haven't already optimized your digital identity (starting with your LinkedIn Profile) for key search terms, it's time to get going.

Make it easier to be found by adding job titles throughout your Profile, as well as Skills (within LinkedIn's new Sections) that reflect the terms you see in job postings. This will help your Profile to rank higher in recruiter searches for candidates with these specific competencies.

Next, sit back and watch what happens by analyzing the makeup of your Profile visitors.

By taking stock of who visits your Profile, you'll be able to see if your search results improve, and can then continue to tweak your keywords appropriately. Hint: it's all about market testing and experimentation, so the sooner you change things up, the better.

2 - Start creating your own "luck."

Job search "luck" usually ends up being mostly talent and preparation. Unless you have a well-run network, you'll need to create your own opportunities. To do this, think in terms of what employers want, then set out to prove that you've got what it takes.

Changing industries? Take a class or read a book on your desired market, then mention it in your resume, on your LinkedIn Profile, and in your cover letter. Better yet, note your efforts and ask for an informational interview with a successful pro in your desired field - which might lead to a chance to be mentored.

Think your resume lacks pizzazz? Start Googling for resumes in your field, not for copying, but to take notice of what your resume is lacking. Ask former co-workers how they'd describe you. It's all about getting that brand message out of your head and onto the paper.

Not sure you're interviewing well? Perform a Google search for job search sites, which are often teeming with wise interview advice on everything from calming your jitters to salary negotiation. Read, listen, learn, and absorb. Then, create power stories for yourself that illustrate your top 5 achievements. Rehearse and take note of what questions you can answer with them. It's a confidence-building exercise that will have you looking forward to interviews.

Feel like giving in and admitting defeat? Don't. Nearly every person that you'd otherwise consider successful has been turned down (or laid off, demoted, or experienced another type of setback) at some point in time in their careers.

Remember this when it seems that you've been ruled out as a candidate. It only takes one - one job, one opportunity to show what you can do, and one person to believe in you.

3 - Act "as if" you're already successful.

Struggling to envision how your job search will turn out? Put yourself in the "already arrived" category, and invest some time, energy, and even funds in what can make you appear more successful and competent to others.

Get a professional headshot taken for your social media profiles--and dress the part for the job you want (not just the job you have). Polish your resume with a fresh, cutting-edge format and tone.

If you haven't explored what your competition is presenting to employers, take a look at professional and executive resume samples - you might be surprised at how things have changed!

In addition, if you're using the Web as a platform to attract attention (either through blogging, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn), do a self-check to ensure that you're presenting a positive image, rather than tearing down others online. This will go a long way toward persuading recruiters to forward your credentials to employers.

So, make it a priority to take stock of your executive job search techniques - making yourself findable, approachable, and marketable to take advantage of fresh new opportunities.

Business Success Starts With the Right Marketing Strategy and Tools

When it comes to a successful business it often boils down to this--sales, sales, sales. Whether you are selling your books or products, or promoting a speaking event or book tour, normally the bottom line in measuring success is how many sales you make or how many people show up at your event. The results themselves can be what determines whether or not you are successful.

Therefore, to get the best results, it's important to focus on exactly how you're driving those sales and where they are coming from. Ask those who contact you how they found you; was it through an ad, social media, or perhaps a referral? Knowing where your potential clients or customers are coming from is crucial. That tells you what you need to be doing more of in your marketing efforts and what areas to focus on. But just as important is making sure you take full advantage of each and every opportunity that comes your way. It's so easy to do when you have your systems set up properly.

Here are key points to remember in marketing your business:

Getting the Most from Your Shopping Cart- Make sure you get your website and shopping cart working for you. This is key to success. You are missing out on major opportunities every time you don't set up an autoresponder for orders, or have your shopping cart set up to reconnect with your buyers in some way. Think how often you have purchased something (say, for the holidays) and then totally forgot about that business until you receive something new from them, like their latest sales event or their company newsletter. That's exactly how it works - out of sight - out of mind. This one simple step will make a huge difference in your business success now and for years to come.

Knowing Your Statistics- Yes, it truly is important to know your stats so you can utilize that information in future marketing. It will also help you customize your marketing efforts to where there is the most interest, making your efforts more effective. Many in social media obsess over how many are following them, their influence, etc. That is important and one key element to explore, but take it farther than that. Constantly monitor your website stats, blog stats, etc. Many of these will even list keywords that are used to get to your site. Can you imagine just how priceless that can be? That is what is leading clients to you. Monitor all of that. Write down your notes and compare your results monthly. You will be amazed at just how much these simple steps can improve your business and you'll clearly be able to see what's working and what is not.

Having a Team to Support You- Do you have a marketing team or a virtual team behind you dedicated to your business? One that knows what it takes to get better results? A team that can connect all the dots together and make sure that each video you create, and each sales page you write will bring you the results you are looking to achieve. Is that team familiar with your products and services and able to take your thoughts and dreams and make them a reality (with very little supervision)? Behind most successful businesses, you will find a team of dedicated professionals who handle the different aspects of a business. If you don't have a team now, get one. And if you do have a team, make sure you utilize their services fully. Ask them... what else can you do for me? You will be amazed at just how much they come back with.

Running a successful business is mostly about doing the right things over and over again and avoiding the things that aren't working for you. These simple tips should help you do just that. Need help? Hire a virtual team to maximize all your efforts. With the right team in place, you can focus even more on getting the results you're looking for.