The Philippine Stock Market starts the year 2012 on a high note compared to what it had been the previous months. As of the start of trading day on January 20, 2012, 9:34am. The index is at 4,725.79

This is very good considering it has been hovering mostly in the 4,000-4,300 area for most of 2011. Its also good because this sets the investment tone and mood for 2012.

Morgan Stanley has also raised PLDT price expectations to Php3,600 because of their merger from DGTL. As with overall improvements in our index, expect the blue chips and index stocks to be the first to rise but look at the 2nd liners also as there are opportunities to be made there.

As this is the year of the Dragon. Here’s to hoping to a more prosperous 2012 for everyone!  For people that had been wanting to try the stock market but never had, maybe now is the time.

As always, be careful and remember this is investing. Not gambling. Align your trading activities with that in mind.

Here’s a little US Debt Clock I found.

See the story behind Angry Birds and experience as its head designer takes us through the process of a level construction. Credits to mailchimp.com for the video.

While keeping cash in the bank is a solid part of financial management, those are more for monthly living expenses and for emergency needs. There are also many options of investments to explore and there is no correct answer to that. It’s largely a risk-versus-rewards thing and it varies from each person’s investment goals and risk tolerance.

To understand more on my point of view on this, you may want to refer to an old article of mine about Modern Financial Planning.

However, in this one, I will talk about to get started on the Philippine Stock Market. First, some background information. The stock market here in the Philippines is called the “Philippines Stock Exchange“(PSE). Trading hours are from Monday to Friday at 9:30am to 12:10pm except during legal and special holidays. A good number of questions are answered in their FAQ section.

The general idea of the stock market is to buy shares of a company while it is priced low, and sell when it gets high for profit. There are many approaches you can take, like are your investments short-term or long-term? Do you go for fundamental analysis which base your stock decisions on the business performance of a company or do you go for technical analysis which base stock decisions on price action and charts. There is no right or wrong here again and money can be both made and lost either way.

So, how do you get stated?

1. Ask yourself, Is this for me?

You have to understand you can lose money on the stock market. While this is not gambling, it can be very similar if you do not know what you are doing. The key difference is that risk in gambling is never in your favor and you are taking risk for luck. The stock market on the other hand can reduce risk with proper investing research and strategy.

Never invest something you cannot afford to lose. Its one of the old adage I have heard from seasoned veterans and I agree. When you hear of people losing their fortune or savings on the stock market, it is because they become emotional and turned investing into gambling.

If you can can say ‘Yes’ to these, then you can continue considering the stock market.

a. I understand that I can earn from my investments as well as lose. I will not profit from every transaction but my goal is to turn a positive profit from my investments over a period of time.

b. I will invest only a portion of my money.

c. I will spend time to read and research about stock market investing so I will not turn into a gambler.

2. Open an account with a stock broker. 

With the advent of technology, I advise going for an online stock broker so its easier for you to manage your buying and selling. I personally use and suggest CitisecOnline as I find their service mostly reliable.

Requirements for opening an account:

• Fill up the forms
• Submit photocopy of valid government issued ID
• Submit photocopy of any recent billing statement
• Deposit initial fund of Php 25,000 for a regular account. This will be your fund to trade with.

Experience is really the best teacher. So get out there and try it out if this is something you have been meaning to try. Just go conservative at first and don’t invest in something you will stress over. If you cannot eat, sleep or concentrate on your work then you know this is not for you or either you have invested more than you are comfortable with.

The ideal scenario I think is you have a portion of your savings invested but you are ok to follow it once in a while as your schedule permits. Investing in the stock market done properly should not distract you from your day job or your career. Remember, unless you plan to become a full-time stock market investor, protect your day job and career first.

Wow, that is a lengthy article and if this helps at least one person, it is worth my time and effort in writing it. Please do let me know if you are that one person by posting a comment in the blog. Thank you for reading!

It is no secret that at least half of the people you know are users of one social network or more. In the last 2 years, there has never been a more profound development in technology in bridging people together. People are social animals by nature and the need to interact is what it is all about. Deep down, no one likes to be always alone.

Social media now lets people connect and share their lives. The beauty and power of this is control and exclusivity. You have the power to be as open or as private as you want to be. You choose what content you want to share and who you want to share it to. You also control who you want to know more about.

For marketers, it has long been the norm that advertising and communication is targeted at a demographic or social profile but never has it be as easy as to interact on a personal level. The social media opens up possibilities that is not available before. So before I go further, I would like to share a chart to you made by FredCavazza.net

If you realize, social networking is not just Facebook. Sure most people are on-board the social networking wagon today because of Facebook and Twitter. Mind you they are indeed at the forefront but the scope is much more than that. Games have their own online ecosystem in MMO (Massive Multiplayer Online) games. Blogs has their own niche and readers, YouTube channels has made instant amateur celebrities, the list goes on.

So definitely, as a marketer, you cannot afford to not be involved as you competitors will be. The question is, where and how? Its all too many, its all too new. That is what I often hear from my friends and my clients.

So, to keep my article at reasonable length, I will just tell you ‘why you should do it’ and save the ‘how’ for another article.

1. Its not just about friends. This is one of the common misconceptions marketers make. They think social media is just about connecting with friends, sharing photos and making comments about each other. Yes, it is about that, but it is so much more.

Research has shown that people will like and follow a brand on social media for several reasons:

• To show their support for a brand
• To find out about the latest promotions
• To get exclusivity
• To get customer service (though this is mostly bottom of the list since most will use email, then the phone, and save social media for last resort)

Given that people will be willing to follow your brand, shouldn’t it be your duty as a good marketer to give them something worthy of their attention?

2. To get found, to get viewed, and to get heard. Since it has been established that almost everyone interacts online in one social media or another, it is where people are when they are online. Not exactly all the time but very likely, a person will check his Facebook, Twitter, Forum, Blog, or others at least once a week. Probably more than that. If they are there, you should be there as well. Its the perfect opportunity to let them know you exist, and that you have something they could be interested in.

The key though is content. Social Marketing is not about SPAM. It is not about unsolicited messages. Remember, people have control and they can just as easily kick you out. It is very important to always give good content. Ask yourself this, is my content going to be interesting? Is my content going to be of value? Your content should be something you would be willing and wanting to get yourself at the minimum.

3. Build relationships. Foster brand loyalty. When customers voluntarily like your brand on a social media platform, they are already giving you a chance to build a relationship. If you take care of that relationship, you have a genuine opportunity to become a ‘friend’ of that customer and not just a cold-hearted corporation. You can interact with them on a conversational level, share content that will be valued. Do all this, and in return, you will gain brand loyalty.

Simply put, Social Marketing is here to stay, its a great tool to build your brand. If you do not start getting on it, your competitors will. Can you afford not to?

Out with the old and in with the new. That’s something we often hear and that is true I believe with financial planning these days. Traditional ways of thinking and financial planning seems to have its limitations and societies these days are a bit different already. While basic financial intelligence and practices are still solid, things like cutting debt, living below your means, etc, these are still foundations and not really a financial plan.

Why things are different? Here are some things to ponder about:

1. Living Your Life. Traditional financial planning advice would tell you to work hard, don’t go on vacations, don’t eat out, save everything so you can enjoy it all when you retire. Considering you start working at 20 and retire at 60 years old, its basically saying sacrifice 40 years of your life so you can stop working and enjoy the same stuff when you get to 60.

2. Age. When we get older, we cannot do things as we could have when we were younger. So some of the things you may want to do or experience when you were younger may not be possible at a later time. For example, if you want to go exotic places and climb mountains, go skiing, do sky diving, these are things you cannot put off until you’re 60. Let’s face it, some things in your bucket list could be done later, some can’t.

3. Late Start. Traditional financial planning is all about saving up. This could be true when you are in your early twenties and even feasible when in your early thirties. But when you are nearing retirement age or already in the wrong track in your fifties. This is no longer an option for you. Harsh as it is, time really is money.

4. Financial Advice. Traditional long-term financial planning often involves saving up for life events like a wedding, a vacation, a car, kids, and ultimately retirement. It is also very often that financial planners will tell you or rather scare you into thinking that you need to save up and prepare for these things. While that is true, they often then offer you investment products related to insurance and/or bank investment options. The thing is, they are likely to offer you a product from a company they represent. So unless you get your advice from an independent financial planner that has your interest at heart and has the proper experience and knowledge, be careful.

5. Inflation and Cost of Living. Often the end objective of financial planning is to prepare you for retirement and education expenses for your children. But the old adage of working hard and saving money in the bank is no longer feasible. Interest rates today are a fraction of what they used to be. The bank is only a place where you can safekeep your money but not really earn it. Whatever you save today would have horribly depreciated 40 years from now.

The Modern Day

Today, most people are either working several jobs at the same time or having on-the-side jobs. This is how most people cope up with increasing demands for income. Most couples work simultaneously too. While this grind stresses a person out, it does make ends meet.

However, there is another way and many other options that most working professionals ignore. That is Investing. I believe that hard earned money should be properly invested and that is true financial planning. Make your money work for you. Passive Income. –These are all buzwords most of us has heard at some point in time. Yet, many people shy away because they are afraid that its complicated, afraid that they will lose their hard-earned money, afraid of being scammed, etc.

Truth is, while any investments carry a certain amount of risk, the only sure bet is that by just keeping your money in the savings account of a bank, it will deteriorate horribly in 40 years.

Here are some of the financial grounds I think everyone has to cover in their financial plans.

1. Life Insurance. Everyone will die. That’s one fact about life we can’t avoid but we can prepare for. Having a life insurance is not for yourself but being considerate to your loved ones. Having a life insurance policy would ensure that there would be funds to cover any funeral expenses, debt that you could have left with mortgages, credit cards, business loans, etc. It would also ensure that your family would have a startup capital for either a new business or to whether the months where your spouse looks for a job.

Note that Life Insurance premium cost is based on your age. The earlier you get one, the cheaper it is.

2. High-Yield Deposit Account. These are your regular saving accounts on steroids. While the interest rates are still low, they are often higher than your normal savings but would also require a higher minimum maintaining balance. They usually also have a limit on the number of withdrawals per month. My suggestion is to create this fund to keep your emergency fund. A fund you need quick access to in case of emergencies. You need a fairly reasonable amount set aside, you need to be able to withdraw quickly anytime but do not really expect to touch it often. So instead of regular savings, put it in a high yield account for that extra interest at no cost anyway.

You will still need to keep your normal accounts for ATM and Checking needs but just don’t waste too much balance on them.

3. Credit Cards. Always pay your dues in full. Credit cards often offer you a minimum payment option which can seem ridiculously low but you will end up paying alot more in the long-term because of the interest they carry. Interest expenses you could have saved from spending by not going into debt. This is also often a way credit card companies lull you into a fall sense of security and letting you spend above your means. By paying promptly and in full, you can be sure you are not spending over what you can afford and you save on any unnecessary interest expenses. It usually also is prudent to limit your credit cards to 2-3 cards as you can get savings from debt consolidation.

4. Broaden your Financial Intelligence. Read up and learn on what are your options and what seems to fit your needs and personality the most. There are alot of options and while I cannot cover them all or each one in this article, my objective is to point you in the right direction. Things to look at would be:

• Stocks and Bonds
• Foreign Currency Trading or even simply diversifying your assets to include foreign currency
  
• Mutual Funds
• Real Estate
• Businesses

That was one of my longest articles I think, while I certainly have alot more I’d like to share, I hope this article has helped you realize your options and expanded your way of thinking about financial planning. At the end of the day, I simply believe that working hard and saving money in the bank is no longer viable. The world has grown more competitive and more complex. This is not to say that proper financial planning cannot be done but there are certainly alot more factors to consider, alot more options to explore, and alot more foresight to be had.

DISCLAIMER: This article is an expression of the author’s opinion. It is not meant as professional financial advice. You are liable for your own decisions. Please research details for yourself or consult a licensed professional. (though be careful who you talk to).

With Apple’s latest upcoming product, the iPad, there is now a whole new world of possibilities in the publishing business. The iPad will have an online bookstore much like the appstore built-in. You will be able to purchase novels, subscribe to your favorite newspaper and magazines.

The promise of this new medium is that with a larger high quality display, it is the best browsing and reading experience ever. It also opens up new possibilities to traditional print where options were never possible before. You can now incorporate video right into the content. For example, instead of reading the great sports play made by your football team, why not see that clip right there? Instead of reading the captions of a speech, why not see the video of the speech itself?

I for one is definitely excited on the possibilities this can bring. Leading the pack already is VIV Publishing. They are a publishing company that is all digital. Here is a preview of their work and how they plan to change the game in publishing.

VIV Mag Interactive Feature Spread on the iPad

VIV Mag Digital Motion Cover for the iPad

New York Times Demo on the iPad

With the iPad priced at $499 on the entry level model, it becomes quite possible to get this device on the hands of many people. Exciting times ahead boys and girls!

Image Credits to Morris

Most salesmen today forget what it is like to be sincere. I am talking about genuine care for the need of the customer. Not that fake enthusiasm or that nice smile, pleasant comments just to get your business.

I believe that sincerity is one of the most important factors when doing any business transaction. The sincere salesman will take the time to understand your need, identify your problem, and present you with options best suited to your interest. Sometimes, the solution does not involve the product the salesman is selling at all. When this happens, don’t you just so appreciate the sincerity and honesty that you will likely purchase from that same person next time you need something he is selling?

Call me old school but I prefer this way of doing business. While this may not land you the most sales in the short-term, it will most likely build customer loyalty in the long-term.

Just to share a recent experience, the fitness club I go to is heavy on selling their “personal training sessions”. The personal trainers in the gym often fake sincerity by coming up to you to helping you with your workout.  After a while, they will try to “sell” you on getting their services for personal training. Once they realize you will not sign up. they’ll drop you like a hot potato and would much rather spend time by the water cooler than provide the assistance they were so eager to just minutes ago.

Regardless of the product you are selling, be sincere. Think of it as helping another human being if customer loyalty is not yet enough motivation. The world needs more sincere salesmen.