Cultured Views

Selling online

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Once you have decided to set up your own online business the next most vital thing is to provide a facility for your customers to buy your products and pay for your services. You need to provide a facility that not only offers ease of purchase but security of payment. Here is the way to achieve this.

AShop Commerce provide shopping cart software that will help to make your business a success. This shopping cart software is easily installed and is not web based so as an online proprietor you only have to be concerned with dealing with the issues that your customers will be interested in.

Their ecommerce shopware is relatively affordable for you to create the online store you want your customers to have; it is simple to use and they offer you packages to suit your budget. One important aspect is to provide your clients with a variety of features to utilise, particularly secure online payment facilities.

AShop Commerce promise to provide full back up and support to all their merchant clients; you will no doubt offer your customers full customer service so you can expect the same from AShop Commerce. They will be your best friends in your online business.

Popularity: 20% [?]

The pitfalls of insurance in France

Insurance, of any kind, is one of those facts of life that we just have to accept. A necessary evil if you like. In most countries taking out an insurance policy is a pretty straightforward procedure; you shop around and usually end up signing up for the policy you believe will suit you best. To be honest they are all pretty much the same nowadays.

If you have life insurance you are supposed to rest assured that come what may your loved ones will be looked after in the event of your death. As we wont be around to check on that after the fact we just have to believe what our policy tells us. Basically shopping around for an insurance policy, especially for home insurance, has become a lot easier with the advent of the internet and in most countries the consumer has the right to change insurance companies at the end of their policy’s term. However in France, unless you notify your insurance company two months prior to the end of your policy you will be legally bound to accept a policy renewal from them. Even if they change the cost of the insurance after you have signed. We encountered this while seeking car insurance here. In fact what the French insurance companies practice contravenes European Law. The only thing to do is stand up and declare this. They soon back down, as they did in our case.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Athena is a 7 minute Con

As I write this millions of women are frantically googling the six letter word Athena in the hope it will be the answer to their dreams. Athena has become the most wanted facial product in the cosmetic world and even Ebay is getting into the act.

Athena  7-minute miracle cream promises to wipe away all traces of age and any damning proof of how old a woman is. In 7 minutes. And you are supposed to be able to get away with lying about your age for 24 hours afterwards. This conjours up frightening images to me: 70 year old women with baby smooth faces and peachy skin held aloft by wrinkled and crinkled necks walking around convinced that they now look 20 whilst tottering around in mini skirts and stilettos. Too scary to dwell on.

While it would be fantastic to be able to turn back the clock on our faces for a few hours a day I don’t see Athena as being the ‘girl’ to do it. Firstly you have to smear it on with a brush and wait, entirely motionless, for 7 minutes. Your skin starts to tingle after one minute - this is where you hopes start to rise. Then you look in the mirror; instead of seeing the face you had 10 or 20years ago you see the face had 10 or 20 minutes ago. The only difference is it is covered in an egg-white like film that is just waiting for you to smile so it can crack and flake all over your shoulders. Like facial dandruff.

So what do you do…NOT smile?. And walk around as if you have lockjaw?. Botox already promises that!.

Here’s my advice: grow a fringe, wear a tight ponytail, buy some nice makeup and make do with what you’ve got. That’s what I will do when the time comes. Athena is just a 7-minute disappointment.

Popularity: 6% [?]