--- NON-PROFIT SKILLS ---
Careers in Non-Profit Marketing: Skills & Requirements.
http://www.cob.ohio-state.edu/dept/fin/nonprofit.htm

People Skills
Sales Skills
Communication Skills
Problem Solving Abilities
Creativity
Initiative
Presentation Skills
Team Work
Leadership Abilities

Very High
Very High
Very High
High
Medium
High
High
Very Low - High
High

--- COMPELLING ---
Web startups evolve from cool to compelling.
June 23, 1999, pC6, Reuters News to Toronto Star, by Samuel Fromartz.

Ted Leonsis, one of the gurus over at America Online Inc., was asked at a conference here (Washington, D.C.) what he thought the coolest Web technology would be in 2005.

AOL's president of interactive properties said the question missed the point.
What will be prevalent, Leonsis said, are "technologies that let you live life better online than offline -- that will make your life easier to lead." And those probably will not be cool. ...

... the heart of the matter: "What's the compelling need?"
Customers will only buy a product over the long haul if it satisfies a need --- even if that need is unknown at the present time. Fulfilling a need is better than being cool. ...

In fact, the most successful services on the Web have offered novel solutions to mundane, everyday problems. --- Anything that improves the process gets eyeballs. ---

Perhaps the sexiest model would be to combine the two services so a shopper could see consumer reviews, click to buy and get a cheaper price as more people joined in. ...

--- PORTABLE ---
Portable Computers Pay Off.
June 23, 1999, by Gerry Purdy.

As portable computers grow more powerful, they're becoming a more integral part of the enterprise. Some 60% of users who travel regularly in the course of their jobs rely on notebooks (computers) as their primary computing platform; that number is expected to grow to more than 90% within a few years. ...

But IT executives should consider something beyond notebook technologies's total life-cycle price, which includes the hardware, training, maintenance, support, upgrades, and other soft costs such as supplies. They should consider the total benefit of ownership: the increased productivity and flexibility the technology delivers. How do we quantify TBO ...

Here's how:

• Benefit in dollars = Productivity in dollars + flexibility in dollars + travel in dollars + personal empowerment in dollars.

• Productivity in dollars = Work done outside of business hours multiplied by the hourly rate of work.

• Flexibility in dollars = Amount of time likely to be traded with in-office work multiplied by the hourly rate of work, in order to accomplish personal business but still fulfil job responsibilities.

• Travel in dollars = Amount of time spent working on a system while traveling multiplied by the hourly rate.

• Personal empowerment in dollars = A more subjective figure, it is the amount of work time each week an employee believes is enhanced by having a notebook PC multiplied by the hourly rate of work. ...

For instance ... Fred ... who works 40-hour weeks ... makes $48,000 per year ... has a $2,500 notebook ... his TBO would be $18,720 ....

Prosumers are intimately aware of the TBO.
For years they have been purchasing computer hardware, software, clothing, vehicles, cellphones, VCRs and self-study courses for "personal" use at personal expense --- to more effectively carry out their job requirements. Earlier prosumers dating from the 1980s began using portable and laptop computers as part of their consulting, sales, or marketing activities as early as they were introduced. This hard working quiet core of business support persons and entrepreneurs know that participation in the economy of the 1990s increasingly costs an entry fee which minimizes their real income.

A decade later, awareness of total benefit of ownership --- in a hypercompetitive society in which the cost of production is increasingly being downloaded to the worker --- is entering into the status quo.

Prosumer INDEX

--- LOWERING INCOME ---
Tax grab worse than most realize.
May 27, 1999 -- by Diane Francis.

On of the greatest competitive disadvantages Canada has is that its citizens simply do not understand how excessive taxes are in this country. ...

Here are the grim facts.
The average taxpayer loses 46% --not 29% (perceived)-- of his or her income to taxes. (The average income is $49,996 and taxes of all kinds total $23,218 a year, according to Statistics Canada.) ...

That means Canadians cannot account for nearly $170 a week that goes missing from their wallets.

This is a competitive disadvantage because it means we are a nation of lousy money managers. ...

(Income tax paid, on average,) is $8,466.16 annually and is significantly higher than south of the border. ...

.. hidden taxes that give rise to economic myths and allow politicians to grab our dough, give it back to us and take credit for their kindness. ...

Rents in cities are high ... Facts are, the average taxpayer is forking out $1,884 in property taxes, directly or indirectly. ...

Facts are, Canadians pay an average of $1,958 per annum on profit taxes, which are the taxes imposed on companies that have to be passed on to consumers, investors, and employers in the form of higher prices, lower dividends and lower wages. If these taxes on profits were not passed along, corporations would go bust. ...

Facts are, health and hospital taxes, plus social security assessments (Employment Insurance, Workers' Compensation and Canada Pension Plan), are second only to income taxes in terms of what the average taxpayer pays to governments. The total is $4,024 a year. 10% more than the GST and provincial sales taxes combined. ...

To sum up, the (Readers' Digest) poll showed that people think 29% is fair, but, because they don't know what they're talking about, their taxation is actually 46%"

Prosumers are looking for a way to increase their real income.
Reducing their tax burden is one big option. Self-employment, not-for-profit business structure, and a more-than-present self-sustaining lifestyle all contribute to such an outcome.

• Prosumer INDEX

--- INTERNET ---
Internet Publishing, Special Report.
1998-12-18 by Industry Canada.

... "The cardinal rule of publishing as well as marketing is to know your audience.

Once a publishing operation is established it can be both simple and inexpensive to publish any kind of information. ...

With minimal investment a web site can connect to corporate databases to provide a convenient and effective way to publish legacy data ....

Narrowcast publishing in these forums is inexpensive and an excellent way to reach people with identified interests. ...

The major expenses for Internet Publishing, however, are the time and effort, necessary hardware and software required to create the information and Internet access fees. Once a document is prepared electronically there are no additional costs for transmission based on volume ...

Internet publishing offers the possibility to continually present updated information. ...

Limitations ... some disadvantages ... bandwidth ... file sizes must be minimized to ensure speedy transmission. ... Differences in audiences' hardware and Internet access speeds further complicate the design of documents. To overcome these problems the common practice is to design documents for the average user who is not expected to have the fastest computer and modem on the market today. ...

Internet publishing can ... decrease costs, reach larger audiences and enhance document functionality. ...

One strength of Internet Publishing is that information can be published through multiple technologies to reach different audiences, at different times, for different purposes. ...

Technology integration is the direction of the future, allowing information to be recycled, repackaged and distributed to different audiences for unique purposes. ... "

Internet Publishing is NOT the only Prosumer oriented industry yet everything connected with it successfully is. Presenting economical, empowering, practical, relevant options and awareness building information which offers personalization and choice to a participant --- is always a winning Prosumer Strategy.