EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION
As a business owner and/or entrepreneur, when you hire someone you pay them a salary thinking that salary ought to be incentive enough to motivate them to produce the results you want. That makes complete sense ... from an owner's perspective. However, as Dr. Phil asks so poignantly, "How's that working for you?" If you want to work with people the way they are vs. the way you think they should be, you'll want to watch today's video on "How to Incentivize Your Employees for Faster Results" and use the six questions I lay out to help you create the right plan for your business. Watch this video from Bruce Johnson.
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 Business Resources & News
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ONLINE MARKETING
While many business owners recognize the growing importance of online marketing, too many others miss out on the valuable business opportunities presented by the internet in a world that is increasingly dependent on Smartphones, tablets, and laptops. For any business - but especially those that depend on a local customer base, such as service providers and brick-and-mortar shop fronts - attracting local customers through online efforts can often be a determining factor of success. Read more at Read more at DirectoryBug.com.
And here are a few statistics about our online Officials Buyer's Guide, in which chamber members are listed free as part of their membership:
The web based Official Buyer's Guide:
- Is search engine optimized so that member business listings appear in about 31,000 search engine results each month on Google, Yahoo, Bing and others.
- Was used to conduct more than 62,000 searches in 2015.
- Hosted over 206,000 visits to individual member listing pages in 2015.
As the article excerpt above says, the online exposure provided is incredibly valuable to member businesses.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
U.S. retail and food services sales for January were $449.9 billion, an increase of 0.2 percent (+/-0.5%)* from the previous month. That is also up 3.45% compared to January of 2015. For complete information visit http://www.esa.doc.gov/content/indicators, and for current local economic data visit our Economic Dashboard for Muskingum County.
RETAIL TRENDS
From Boulevard Strategies: Please join us in exploring 10 key trends, insights, observations, and musings regarding the retail industry in Ohio and beyond. This is our 11th Annual Retail Top 10 List. We start from scratch each year and write all new material. We do not try to cover every trend every year, so if something is missing from this year's list, it may have been covered in a recent prior Top 10. We try to share with you what we've been seeing, experiencing, reading about, and thinking about lately...so please read and enjoy!
FORKLIFT SAFETY
Forty percent of all forklift accidents involve a pedestrian. Ensure pedestrians stay a safe distance away from the forklift with the Red-Zone Danger Area Warning Light. The Red-Zone puts a bright red line on the floor to keep pedestrians away. This zone can be adjusted to the distance of your choice. The Red-Zone can be mounted on the sides of the forklift as well as the rear and can even be installed on all four sides to create a complete danger zone outline. Learn more about this product at www.forklifttrainingsystems.com.
HIRING
According to a survey of 444 companies by Right Management, companies experienced the following after a "bad hire":
- 66% experienced a decrease in work productivity
- 51% suffered higher training costs
- 44% dealt with increased recruitment costs
- 40% faced higher severance costs
- 54% lost their customers and/or market share
Nect Recruiting Software has produced a comprehensive free guide to help businesses walk through the steps of filling open positions with the right hire. The guide can be viewed at http://nectjobs.com/recruiting/.
DIGITAL ADVERTISING
- With a proliferation of content and the rise of multimedia tasking, it's harder than ever for ads to break through to viewers. Columnist Peter Minnium offers - in his column "Pay Attention! 3 Steps To Digital Advertising Breakthrough" - steps you can take to help tackle the challenge. Read the column at the Media Network of Central Ohio's Digital Marketing Minute.
- Each month some 110,000 people use the phrase "digital marketing" in a Google search. The reality is that business owners are increasingly investing in digital tactics, tools and methods of marketing and the term "digital marketing" isn't going away anytime soon. In this expert blog post, "There is No Digital Marketing," we explore this digital revolution, how to ride the trend without falling off and what it really takes to be successful at marketing in a digital world. Read more from Infusionsoft.
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Chamber Updates & Services
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STAYING INFORMED
One big reason businesses are chamber members is to stay informed about business issues and solutions. Here's a sampling of some of the best resources available on our website, www.zmchamber.com.
- Business Tools - A variety of online business calculators such as a sales pipeline tool, a price calculator, break even calculator and more.
- Size Up - Online local market data tool that helps you plan advertising and compare your business to your industry.
- News & Advice - Up to date business headlines and stories from national media sources such as Inc.com, Wall Street Journal and others.
- Official Buyer's Guide & Member Directory - This online guide has a lot of information about area businesses, and it's business listings were viewed more than 200,000 times in 2015.
- Tourism Information - If you want comprehensive information on what to see and do in the area, or if you want to share that information with visitors headed our way, go to visitzanesville.com.
- Calendar of Meetings & Events - Both www.zmchamber.com and www.visitzanesville.com offer calendars you can use to see what's coming up. Also, if you are promoting an event or meeting you can use both to do that.
- Job Listings - Members are free to post their job listings on our website, www.zmchamber.com.
- Economic Dashboard - Local economic indicators presented in an easy to read format.
- Chamber Experts Blog - Columns submitted by area business people to share their expertise (and any member is welcome to submit to the blog).
5 MARKETING SERVICES YOU CAN USE TODAY
- Expand your online presence by customizing your member business listing in the online directory.
- Promote your events and meetings on our web-based calendar of events.
- Offer an online Hot Deal via our website to promote a sale, special promotion, or discount.
- Illustrate your professional expertise by posting a business column on the Chamber Experts blog.
- A free social media marketing account is provided to each member via Save Local Now (SLN) a software platform that helps you simplify and streamline your social media posting and email marketing.
Visit the Marketing Solutions Center to help you identify chamber services that can meet your needs depending on what you are trying to accomplish.
SPRING BREAK EVENT
Mark your calendars for the Chamber's annual Spring Break event. It will be held on Friday April 1 from 7 am to 9 am at the Muskingum Recreation Center. This event features the annual ACES Awards and Safety Council awards, and its always a casual, fun time. Watch your inbox for more details.
PREPARING THE FUTURE WORKFORCE
Challenges related to the workforce continue to be an issue for many area businesses. The "Student-Business Connector" project is one initiative aimed at this challenge that we started in 2015 and are continuing to ramp up. We are surveying businesses about opportunities for students to become involved and learn about the world of work, such as internships and apprenticeships, and publishing that information online for use by educators and students. This project is one way we can help employers address workforce readiness challenges over the long-term.
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