Jobs and Employment News March 2010

Jobs Bill Signed Into Law by Obama

In signing the bill, called the HIRE Act, the president said that while government can’t be the only solution to address lagging employment in the wake of the recession, it can serve to “promote a strong, dynamic private sector” that can drive job creation.

The bill includes $17.5 billion in tax cuts, business credits and subsidies for state and local construction bonds, and moves $20 billion into the highway trust fund for spending on highway and transit programs. It exempts businesses that hire unemployed workers from paying the payroll security tax through December of 2010.

Read on….

 

News from the White House

The White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy (SAP) supporting the inclusion of $600 million for summer employment programs for youth in the House passage of the Disaster Relief and Summer Jobs Act of 2010, saying that in addition to essential help in keeping America prepared for natural disasters, “It also takes another important step forward in the ongoing effort to help put Americans back to work through the expansion of a youth summer jobs program and offers continued support to America’s small businesses, which are the backbone of the American economy.”

Read on…

Unemployment Update

In February, the number of unemployed persons, at 14.9 million, was essentially unchanged, and the unemployment rate remained at 9.7 percent.

Read on…

 

California Layoffs Database: See if your company is planning big jobs cuts in 2010

California’s WARN law requires certain companies with more than 75 employees to provide 60 days advance notice of a plant closing or mass layoff involving 50 or more employees.
Search our database by company to see if your employer has filed a notice and to see how many layoffs were made in 2008 and 2009 and planned for 2010 in each California city where it has a facility.

Search SJ Mercury News…

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The ABCs of Success at Work

Here are the ABCs of success at work – this is how I make the best of work at my workplace!

A

Attitude – When I wear my confident-happy-attitude at work; that is who I am that day. When I wear my ‘can-do-anything’ and ‘I-am-Successful-at-what-I-do’ attitude; that is who I am that day. I am always aware of the fact that my attitude defines who I am. My attitude at work and towards work has helped me make my workdays a pleasure, everyday.

B

Boss – I keep my boss informed on my current tasks and those I would want to work in future. I make all efforts every week to update my boss on my accomplishments – I want to be in my boss’s good books for sure!

C

Customer /Client – What I do today is significant to my customers’ and clients’ expectations. It is because of my customers/clients that I am here. I make sure that every now and then I try to find out how my work is satisfying my them. I always am on the alert on what can I do now and in near-future to make them happy and feel ‘treated-well’.

D

Deadlines, I keep a note of all task deadlines on sticky notes all over my workplace. When you consistently meet deadlines at work it shows how efficient you are at time management and how driven you are; in short meeting deadlines is critical to success at work.

E

Effort – Sometimes I just have to put in that extra effort to get the work done. I do not shy away from putting in a few extra hours and that extra effort that can get the work done on time. I show my diligence and the eagerness to be good at what I do.

F

Focus – I give special emphasis on focus at work. There are many things that distract me, email, coworkers gossip or politics, meetings.. with too much to do focus can take a backseat. I try my best to avoid distractions when I am my productive best. It has helped me keep up to my deadlines and do what I am being paid for.

G

Goals – I always keep in mind to define goals and keep them SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound). To get somewhere you ought to know where to go, without goals I would have no idea if I ever was successful at anything.

H

Helping others – I have my workload brimming most of the time, but I take out 2-3 hours every week devoting that time to help my colleagues or new hires or my manager if they need help with something they are working on.

I

Ideas – I work on having a lot of them, but I make sure that I sift through to get the best and work on it to see the light of the day. An idea without “make-it-real” strategy goes nowhere.

J

Jog – oh yes, you didn’t expect this word to be on the best worker’s work list, but it is! I jog for half an hour around midday; it helps relieve tension and gets me fresh and focused for the rest of the day. I have noticed that I tend to get a little lethargic around mid day so it is time to take a break and I understand that being healthy is directly propotional to my success at the workplace. I have to take care of my body and mind first and only then I can be exceptional at work.

K

Keen – I am a keen person. I am interested in learning more and maintain a spirited interest in the news and breakthroughs in my industry. I strive to be better every day and this would not have been possible if I was not a keen learner and explorer or new ideas.

L

Language – I mind my language at work. I work in a multi-cultural environment and with clients in various countries over the globe. I know that respecting my colleagues is of utmost importance to me. I want to build healthy relations and learn from my colleagues and therefore I make sure that I’m respectful of their culture and beliefs.

M

Meetings – like them or not they are there. I try to make the best out of them by knowing beforehand what they are about and how they affect my current work and tasks. And if they are not so important then I just skip them to get my priority tasks taken care of first.

N

No – I have learnt that work never ends, there is more somewhere all the time. Learning to say NO has helped me prioritize my work and be an expert on the very few areas I want to be working on. Doing more is always not efficient. Less but doing a great job matters most to me.

O

Organization – there is so much to do and limited time at hand and therefore I need to be more organized to make the best use of my time. Organization helps me be efficient and not lose any precious time when on time-critical tasks.

P

Performance Reviews are essential monitors of my growth at work and I want to stay on top of them. I do not wait for the annual reviews to daunt me; I take charge and am proactive towards my reviews.

Q

I Question a lot at work. Observation and right questioning have been most effective in helping me find out how to get my work done in the best possible way. And my coworkers and managers like me more because I guess they like to be asked!

R

Respect the time of others, I do not hang out in their work areas or gossip around the water-cooler now and then. I do not interrupt my co-workers or manager without prior appointment (unless of course urgent) and expect the same from them. I am at my work for a certain time, the best way to make complete use of this time is to respect time itself.

S

Synergy – no man is an island and teamwork is the only way to achieve breakthroughs on whatever we do. I honor teamwork and often work on my team building and collaboration skills at my workplace.

T

Training – I am true believer in training, I ensure that I keep myself abreast on new technology and change in the workplace by training on new systems and software that my industry endorses. I train to learn more, I train to ensure that I remain valuable in the job market.

U

Urgency – I am a good listener and an active participant in my team’s tasks. I understand when things are urgent and need my extra efforts and time; I am ready to shift my schedule to take care of urgent matters first. I know that by doing this I am making myself more visible and valuable.

V

Value – I want to be a valuable resource to my organization and also provide the best value of my work. I want to be recognized for what I do and for that I ensure that I provide the best quality value from my side and the adulations will follow.

W

Workaholic – Ok that’s not me. I do not intend to be one because I want to enjoy my work and for that I have to be away from it to have a balance in life and then I would want to get back to work refreshed with a happy mind and relaxed body. I remind myself often – do not be a Workaholic!

X

X-Ray – Alright I admit I did not find a good word for what I have to say here but I do have a point which refers to X-RAY! Through an X-ray exam you can reveal internal structure which is not visible from outside. It is an in-depth analysis and that is what I like doing at my work. Quality of work is the essence of success and if you can provide the best possible quality of your products and services to your customers you can build a sustainable business. That’s exactly why I like X-rays at work – a deeper look to make your product solid at the core.

Y

Yield – yield by definition here would mean ‘production of labor’, or what is the return on your input. The amount of work I put in at my workplace, I want to see an optimal return – the yield that I desire for my work input. I ensure that I am proactive about asking for promotions or pay raise – it is my job to ask my boss or upper management, the first step must come from my side.

Z

Zeal – Nothing great was achieved without enthusiasm. And that is true even at work; I am passionate about my work and work with zeal to make the best of each day. It makes my work life satisfying and happy, that is exactly how I want to be every day!

Which one of the above is your favorite?

Would you share more tips with us? Please add to the comment.

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How to Advertise and Promote your Business

If you are looking for different options to advertise and to promote your business and want to narrow down on the best options for your particular needs, then this article will help you in finding out the different ways to advertise online and how feasible it is to your budget and business needs. Although the article focuses primarily on the internet listings, the traditional personal approach of postcards and mailers should not be written off completely, although we are seeing it as a dying trend – the web has indeed strengthened over the years and will be a highlight for all major advertising for small and mid size businesses this decade.

Local Listings

Getting listed n your local search pages is essential to your advertising strategies; most of the searches that happen on the internet are in search for business listings in close proximity to the customer (searcher). Here are a few ways you can use local listings to advertise your business:

Yellow Pages

According to Wikipedia: A particular Yellow Pages (YP) is a print directory which provides an alphabetical listing of businesses within a specific geographical area (e.g., Greater Chicago), which are segregated under headings for similar types of businesses (e.g., Plumbers). Traditionally these directories have been published by the local phone company, but due to the highly profitable nature of the business there are numerous independent directory publishers. Yellow Pages directories are usually published annually, and distributed for free to all residences and businesses within a given coverage area.

Are yellow pages economical for small business advertising? Although yellow pages advertising is appropriate for all businesses but it may prove expensive depending on the option you chose for the listing and the city where you advertise it. It all depends, you may pay less for a one line ad but the options are numerous, you can use bold, highlighted ad or half page or full page ad and thus increases the cost. It is a good idea to be on the yellow pages but one must poll the customers as to what percentage of your clientele comes through yellow pages. If is not as effective as you would want to be and not the right ROI then perhaps other options might be better for your business advertising.

Yellowpages.com has made the data input and instant access to the internet listings pretty easy and fast and some listings are free as well. So no harm in trying them once and finding out whether they are really worth investing more or time to move on to the ones listed below.

CitySlick.net

Another very interesting online resource for advertising. They feature free listing for one category; you can even add your URL address and add a coupon as well. Impressive, why not try them out?

Local.com

They offer a lucrative free package as well as other incentives for the paid options, check out the comparison here: http://corporate.local.com/advertisewithus/local_businesses_compare.asp

CitySearch.com

Some businesses are doing great with the citysearch listings and personally I feel the restaurants are doing great using citysearch listings, for the others of course, try it by all means, but yet again the price per month is on the higher side as compared to other local listing websites. You must analyze how effective it is to pay the monthly charges they demand and the amount of clicks you get through the ad.

Google Local Business Center

Yes, for sure something of this kind was expected from Google and they did not fall short on expectations. Google’s Local Business Center offers as many coupons as you want to create for your listing, provides a link to your Google analytics account and you can see the clicks and call to action from the advertising straight away. Good service for sure, customization and upgrade options available, worth a try, and since it is free it should be a must on your checklist of advertising.


Online Marketing

Online marketing is a big maze in itself and can be extremely time-consuming and may not prove to be as fruitful as you expect them to be if you do not know which method works out the best for your particular business.

Businesses which benefit tremendously from online marketing are:

  • Website design or website template designing
  • Online branding and web marketing services
  • Real estate agents (offers at new houses on sale etc.)
  • And pretty much any online business that you have be it in the beauty sector or garden supplies, the list goes on

Businesses which might not get as many customers from online marketing as compared to traditional forms of advertising (through personal mailers or yellow pages books) are:

  • House Cleaning services
  • Handyman plumber services
  • Automobile services
  • Haircutting Salons

Now what are the ways to use online marketing, here are some of the popular ones:

Email Marketing

Reaching out to your customers/clients through direct mail is one of the most effective ways of online marketing. You can either “buy” an email list or build on your own to ensure credibility and powerful personal reach to your current and prospective clients. This particular method is very effective for those businesses which sell products or services through the internet, those who sell services like paid webinars and e-books or online courses and also selling affiliate products. You may want to read a precious article titled The Good and Bad of Email Marketing to get a better understanding on Email marketing.

Google AdWords

Thinking of advertising or marketing your business on search engines? Then this method could be one of the best ones to use. The first part of this century is pretty much influenced by Google and its omnipresent technology. According to the Google AdWords website:

With Google AdWords, you can create and run ads for your business, quickly and simply. Run your ads on Google and our advertising network — no matter what your budget, you’ll only pay when people click your ads.

AdWords ads are displayed along with search results when someone searches Google using one of your keywords. Ads appear under ‘Sponsored links’ in the side column of a search page, and may also appear in additional positions above the free search results. That way, you’ll be advertising to an audience that’s already interested in your business.

Look up the website for more details and pricing information.

Social Media

Of course, you will say! The amazing “discovery” of social media in our lives has been as recent as around two years, we are in the beginning stages of this social-media-cloud-burst but already the waves are reaching far and wide. You can leverage the social media in different ways to promote your products, increase credibility or just stay visible in the fierce competition that you see around.

  • Here is a good article to get started with if you want to leverage social media marketing using Facebook, Twitter, Google Buzz etc. to advertise your business: 5 Steps to Leverage Social Media for Businesses
  • SCORE along with Sony have a simple concise article titled Demystifying Social Media: Using Its Power to Connect with Customers which might introduce you to the various ways social media is helping out in advertising. Most certainly the maze is still there, you have to figure out what best works for you and how much time you want to invest in such advertising – since most of them are pretty time consuming if you can delegate such tasks to your partners or friends/family it could be an added asset to your overall marketing plan.

How are you advertising and what has been most effective for you? Do spare a few minutes to comment and share!

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The Good and the Bad of Email Marketing

What marketing strategies do you use to promote your business? If you have not tried email marketing as an option, then this article is definitely for you – to help you understand what E-marketing is about and also to get a list of resources to get going on it.

The Good

One of the major pros of email marketing is that is cheap and effective (cheaper than direct mailing and effective in reducing the time to reach out to thousands in a matter of minutes). There are various email marketing tools and services which you can setup within a matter of hours and get going on your marketing plan – of course the list has to be your effort (or someone else’s if you are willing to pay for it).

The best part about email marketing is that you can reach out to your potential clients anywhere anytime. Your next customer could be the one at Singapore airport who had some time at hand before boarding the next flight, checked his email, saw your recent offer and happily clicked on the secure buy webpage to get your latest offer. Or it would be that person in Bergen, Norway who loved your latest template that you have recently promoted through your newsletter and is downloading it right now and it could be the middle of the night for you. Web marketing is effective in reaching out to thousands and millions in a matter of minutes and has a global coverage for a little cost involved.

Through the email newsletters you can promote your business by:

  • Sending out discounts and coupons for your products or services
  • Keeping your present customers informed about the latest releases of your products or information on upcoming ones
  • Sending out surveys that help improve your products or services or to gauge customer interest in new areas
  • And of course you can earn more income by promoting other’s businesses and products – known as affiliate marketing

The Bad

A major drawback of email marketing and especially if you are buying email lists to advertise your business is you could find yourself in the spammers list. And there goes a lot of credibility. Always give the users a chance to opt out of your email newsletters and listings, without a catch – always.

Another drawback of email marketing could be that you are not reaching out to the customers as effectively, either they are deleting your newsletters or not finding them informative enough or you have bombarded them with too much information too often and they are not interested anymore. However this “bad” factor is up to your marketing skills entirely. Always survey what the customers want and limit your emails to certain times of a week only.

Also when promoting affiliate products just don’t go overboard with promoting whatever comes your way or whoever pays you more, if there are people on your list they are there because they trust you, never betray their trust. The more honest you are with your customers the more money they will bring to you.

Strong ethics and credibility are essential to a sustainable business.

Where to get it?

If you are good at HTML programming and content management (and of course you have the time to create content, manage lists and post on regular intervals), then email marketing could be one of the cheapest advertising and marketing tool. If not then there are some pretty good options available at present which offer great value and support throughout the setup and after, you may want to check a few of these and decide which option works out the best for you. Here is a list of the bigwigs of email marketing:

Topica

Website: http://www.topica.com/
Free
: Yes, 14 days
Cost: 0-5,000 Monthly cost $49.95 ((more pricing info on website also the pricing may be updated on the website, the one quoted here is not the final price)
Trial

iContact

Website:  http://www.icontact.com/ 
Free Trial: Yes, 15 days
Cost: up to 250 – $9.95, up to 5000 – $47.00 (more pricing info on website also the pricing may be updated on the website, the one quoted here is not the final price)

Constant Contact

Website: http://www.constantcontact.com/ 
Free Trial: Yes, 60 days
Cost:  0-500 – $15.00, 2,501-5000 - $50.00 (more pricing info on website also the pricing may be updated on the website, the one quoted here is not the final price, also always check of there is a  contract or extra initial fees)

Vertical Response

Websitehttp://www.verticalresponse.com/ 
Free Trial: Yes, 30 days
Cost: 0-500 – $10.00, 2001-4000 – $46.00 (more pricing info on website also the pricing may be updated on the website, the one quoted here is not the final price, also note there might be some contract or extra initial fees)

AWeber

Website: http://www.aweber.com/ 
Free Trial: First month for $1.00
Cost: 0-500 – $19.00, 2,501-5,000 – $49.00 (more pricing info on website also the pricing may be updated on the website, the one quoted here is not the final price, also note there might be some contract or extra initial fees)

MyEmma

Website: http://myemma.com/ 
Free Trial: hmm, did not see at this time, but there could be …
Cost:  http://myemma.com/pricing.php check the website for details

GroupMail

Website: http://www.group-mail.com/asp/common/default.asp 
Cost: They have custom plans for different user groups, see http://www.group-mail.com/asp/common/purchase.asp

The options do not end here, if you can manage the emails listing and content management yourself you can do all entirely for free or a bare minimum cost, check out these software and see if you can play around with them to come up with a personalized email newsletter for your client base:

PHPLIST

Website: http://www.phplist.com/

phplist is an open-source newsletter manager. phplist is free to download, install and use, and is easy to integrate with any website.

MailChimp

Website: http://www.mailchimp.com/

Free for up to 500 subscribers, you can send up to 3,000 emails per month.

Has email marketing been effective for you? Do share your thoughts and comments.

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