The typical bricks and mortar businesses thrive on reputation or goodwill. The hard work that goes in building the reputation of a company/brand has inspired many a stories and budding entrepreneurs.

It is the stuff that history is made of. Think Apple and you know you have the best of technology. Think Mercedes and you imagine burning the tracks in a sports car!

These brands and many more are trustworthy, in the sense that they have paid attention to the minutest detail and have hardly slipped on their promises.

They have built on a repertoire of trust! They know the worth of a trust the customer has on their abilities to deliver. That’s their goodwill over the years.

Online businesses are no exception to the rule. They also thrive on the trust factor; a trust that surpasses the physical presence of the company. Trust in online businesses becomes even more relevant than in traditional brick and mortar businesses. So, it becomes imperative for a business to rank high on the Search Engine Pages (SERPs).

What is trust, then?

Search Engines like Google, Yahoo and MSN put a premium on the links that a website provides. F

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Ed. Note: We just announced the opening of our offices in São Paulo, Brazil. Here’s a welcome post from Osvaldo Barbosa de Oliveira, country manager of LinkedIn Brazil to our Portuguese speaking members.

É com muito orgulho que venho anunciar o lançamento do primeiro escritório do LinkedIn na América Latina, em São Paulo, Brasil. E o momento não poderia ser melhor, afinal, acabamos de ultrapassar a marca dos 6 milhões de usuários no país.

Com o estabelecimento de nosso escritório e com a expansão de nossa equipe no Brasil, nosso objetivo é fazer com que nossa comunidade latino-americana de profissionais continue aumentando. Tendo em mente o atual crescimento econômico no país, há um enorme potencial para engajarmos os brasileiros na maior rede profissional do mundo.

Desde que lançamos o LinkedIn em português em abril de 2010, assistimos nosso número de usuários crescer de quase 1 milhão para os atuais 6 milhões. Os profissionais brasil

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Under the terms of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the government of Sudan and the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement, a referendum on the question of independence was conducted after 56 years of grinding war between the North and South that left some 2 million southerners dead and millions displaced. The January 2011 referendum was approved by more than 99 percent of voters, now waiting for the benefits of peace.

The U.S.hosted meetings, billed as an International Engagement Conference for South Sudan, emphasized private sector development, good governance and accountability.

A key purpose of the Conference which included officials from private companies, diplomats and international aid officials from Sudan, the United Kingdom, Norway, Turkey, the European Union, the United Nations, the African Union, the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation was dedicated to understand South Sudans strategic development priorities and broker investment opportunities.

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At 211 degrees, the water is hot At 212 degrees, it boils and with boiling water comes steam

And steam can power a locomotive.

As we move from 2011 to 2012, you need to visualize How your 2012 will be ? Or How do you want your 2012 to be ?

Will it just be another year or another number in your life or will it BE THAT EXTRA DEGREE.

One Extra degree makes all the difference, the difference between success and failure, the difference between victory and failure, the difference between being where you are and where you want to be.

That one extra degree of effort in business and life separates the Good from the Great.

Are you ready to make 2012 your best year, are you ready to turn up the heat and move that extra degree ?

Make 2012, that extra degree year of your life. At 212 degrees you’ll be a winner.

Have a Great 2(0)12 Ahead