This is a question I have been asked over and over again. It`s quite simple to answer, too. I chat! That is basically all I do in my pursuit for getting contacts. I find people via chats, be it chat downloads, yahoo, get paid chats, msn messenger, any of them.

It`s personal, it`s friendly, people get to know each other so much better than through emails. I love to chat with other online marketers. It`s great for sharing hints, tips, ideas and information. Some of the people you meet seem to know so much more than you, and if you take the time, you can really learn a lot just by listening.

You can turn your contacts into joint venture partners, downline members, prospects etc. and it`s all mutual. My ezine came about through chat, just by listening to the wants and needs of other entrepreneurs like myself. I listened, and worked from what I heard. I`ve seen people start joint ventures, programs of their own and all sorts of good stuff, just through making chat friends. It is REALLY worth trying for yourself.

Sure, carry on with whatever promotional methods you are using right now, but try chatting with others on a personal level, find out what`s working for them and what`s not. You`ll be surprised by the results. I, personally, have found that I get much better results via chats than any other form of free advertising I`ve tried, and believe me, I`ve tried tons in my almost 4 years online.

Just remember to always be polite, never hype. Be honest, and most of all: Be Yourself. But anyway, in case you DO want to try your hand at chat, here`s a quick crash-course in chat terminology:

Abbreviation       Meaning 
AFK                Away from keyboard 
ASAP               As soon as possible 
A/S/L?             Age/sex/location? 
BBIAB              Be back in a bit 
BBL                Be back later 
BBN                Bye bye now 
BBS                Be back soon 
B/F                Boy friend  
BRB                Be right back  
BTW                By the way 
CU                 See you  
C U L8ER           See you later 
CYA                See ya 
FAQ                Frequently-ask question(s) 
FYI                For your information
G/F                Girlfriend 
GGP                Gotta go pee 
GL                 Good luck
GMTA               Great minds think alike 
H&K                Hug and kiss 
IC                 I see 
IM                 Immediate message  
IMHO               In my humble opinion 
IMO                In my opinion 
JK                 Just kidding  
JTLYK              Just to let you know 
KISS               Keep it simple stupid 
L8R                Later 
L8R G8R            Later gator  
LMAO               Laughing my a** off  
LOL                Laughing out loud  
MorF               Male or female 
NP or N/P          No problem  
OIC                Oh, I see  
OMG                Oh my God 
PM                 Private message 
::POOF::           Goodbye (leaving the room)  
QT                 Cutie  
ROTFL              Rolling on the floor laughing 
ROTFLMAO           Rolling on the floor laughing my a** off 
ROTFLMBO           Rolling on the floor laughing my butt off 
RPG                Role-playing games  
S^ S'up -          what's up  
SUP                What's up 
TANSTAAFL          There ain't no such thing as a free lunch  
TGIF               Thank God it's Friday 
THX                Thanks 
TTFN               Ta-Ta for now  
TTYL               Talk to you later 
TY                 Thank you 
WB                 Welcome back  
WTG                Way to go!  
YW                 You're welcome