If your portfolio could use a little early spring cleaning, optionsXpress just might have the ideas you need for a fresh investing perspective.

We’re bringing great investing education to the Buckeye State this month, with FREE workshop presentations in Columbus and Cleveland. Come spend a day with a community of like-minded investors and find out how to take better control of your money.

Sign up today to save your seat in Ohio:

March 7 – Columbus Workshop

March 14 – Cleveland Workshop

If you’re interested in dividend capturing, you’ll appreciate the enhancements we’ve made to the optionsXpress Dividend Calendar. Configured to be more actionable, the calendar now displays date search results beginning with issues at their ex-dividend dates, as well as those with upcoming dividend payment dates.

So now you have the dates you need – when you need them – to help trade on dividend information more effectively than ever before. You’ll even find a convenient link to our Options Chains page in the action column, allowing you to set your option dividend strategies in motion right from the calendar.

Two important things that every option trader should know before investing – now more than ever:

- Positions needn’t remain static as market conditions change
- Planning how and when to get out can be the difference between success and failure

Learn more about option Repair and Exit Strategies during our FREE webinar presentations on March 9 and March 19 with Gareth Ryan, Founder and Lead Instructor of Investix.

optionsXpress customers can now take advantage of the strategic possibilities of advanced order capability for futures options. Choose from the following advanced order types:

One Triggers Other (OTO)

Place a primary order and up to two contingent orders simultaneously on a single order entry screen to immediately and automatically trigger the contingents when the primary order is filled.

One Cancels Other (OCO)

Enter two option orders on a single order entry screen and link them together in an OCO relationship to trigger only one of the two while automatically attempting to cancel the other.

Alert Triggered Order (ATO)

Stay on top of the markets with a futures options order that will automatically trigger when your pre-set price or time alert is hit.

Learn more about trading futures and futures options at optionsXpress today.

Gold futures continue to nip at the heels of all-time highs, as weary investors engage in the time-honored market tradition of flocking to this “safe haven” commodity when stocks take a beating.

Does gold have a future in your portfolio? Download the free optionsXpress whitepaper Going For Gold and learn more about the opportunities and risks involved in trading this gilded classic.

Tune to WGN Radio on Saturday, March 14 at 2:00 PM CST to hear optionsXpress Senior Vice President of Education Joe Cusick as the featured guest on the “Your Money with Bill Moller” program.

Joe will be doing what he does best – discussing the current state of the markets, talking about options and, most importantly, taking investing questions from listeners.

So set your radio dial to AM 720 or listen live online at wgnradio.com and be sure to call in with your question for Joe.

If you haven’t tried our proprietary FleXCharts lately, it’s time to take another look. Our latest round of enhancements can help streamline your investment analysis to make it easier than ever to find potential opportunities:

Improve Your View

Now you can detach and run up to eight charts simultaneously on one screen.

Cast a Wider Net

Get information like percentage gainers, percentage losers and most actives per index (NYSE, Amex, Nasdaq) right from the charts.

Be Specific

Futures charts now feature hover-over market specs information for quick and easy reference.

Learn more about FleXCharts and our other powerful trading tools today.

In these challenging markets, sometimes it just helps to know you’re not alone. So come meet and mingle with a community of like-minded investors and get some solid ideas for your portfolio as optionsXpress Director of Education Mike Tosaw hosts a FREE investing workshop in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Saturday, March 21.

Sign up now to learn how to take better control of your money with a full day of investing education and take a look at the powerful optionsXpress tools that can help you spot and track potential trading opportunities.

See you in Philadelphia this Saturday!

In this corner it’s the veteran, with thousands of choices and millions of investors – mutual funds.

And in this corner, the relative upstart, trading like a stock but spreading the money around – Exchange Traded Funds .

Which is right for your portfolio? Decide for yourself on Wednesday, March 25 as we break down the similarities and differences, the risks and rewards, and the fact and fiction in the matinee webinar ETFs v. Mutual Funds. Reserve your FREE ringside seat today.

Looking for more control – not just over your investments but over the way you see your account and the markets as well? Then the bold new myOX portal is something you just have to see.

myOX lets you customize the optionsXpress site to your specific interests and preferences. Use the adaptable modular interface to select the information you want to see, its location on the screen and even how it is displayed to ultimately create one place for all of your investing needs. As a myOX user, you’ll have the ability to change your dashboard layout as often as you like, by adding, deleting and reorganizing all of your preferred content on the page.

Choose from 16 different preset modules to add and position on your myOX page in any combination, including chart patterns , account balances, options chains, open and saved orders, watch lists, positions, and more. You can even add one or more RSS Feed modules to incorporate your favorite financial blogs or outside resources directly into your myOX page.

How would your account look in myOX? Drop us a line at info@optionsxpress.com if you’d like to take a peek.

Want to see what we’ve been up to recently?

From powerful trading tools to great new features, the 2009 optionsXpress Overview is a concise, fully-illustrated roundup of all the exciting things we’ve been working on to help deliver the best online investing experience possible.

Whether you’re new to the site or just haven’t really poked around in awhile, it’s definitely worth a look.

Tired of the same old stocks and bonds? Mutual funds not getting it done for you anymore? If your portfolio is crying out for something new, options or futures may fit the bill. But like any new investment, it’s best to learn as much as you can before you start trading.

So spend some time in front of your computer this Wednesday, April 1, as optionsXpress presents three great webinars designed specifically for newcomers to these products. Learn the basics of equity options, futures, and futures options in three informative 30-minute sessions – all in one day. Best of all, just like all of our other webinars, this big tripleheader is completely FREE – no foolin’.

Intro to Equity Options

Intro to Futures

Intro Futures Options