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Monthly book club for dog owners – recurring commissions!
Industrialized countries like the United States, Canada, Great Britain and others have been on heightened alert for several years when it comes to emergency preparedness. While governments urge citizens not to live in fear, they also advise that every citizen be prepared for the possibility of an emergency. Emergencies can range from terrorism, to weather-related disasters, to personal crises. Personal emergency preparedness gives peace of mind and a sense of control of one’s own destiny, even if he or she cannot control the mitigating circumstances. The public’s desire for personal emergency preparedness has fueled the safety industry. It has also opened wide the window of possibility for business advertising through the use of promotional safety items.
This new era of heightened awareness means that people are open to the message of personal emergency preparedness. Yet despite this openness, a large percentage of citizens in industrialized countries still do not take basic personal emergency preparedness measures, such as carrying an auto emergency kit or first aid kit in their vehicles at all times.
Business owners may see this as the ideal opportunity to help promote personal emergency preparedness while advertising their businesses too. By having your business name and logo imprinted on promotional safety items, you’ll be able to send the message to your customers that you are concerned for their personal safety. You can remind them that organizations like the Red Cross recommend that every vehicle be outfitted with basic emergency equipment (tools, flashlight, reflective materials, flares, etc.) and a travel first aid kit. Customers will be grateful for the free promotional safety items that you provide. Plus, you’ll be sure that your business’s name is not only remembered by your customers, but it will be carried with them every time they travel.
Business owners initially assume that promotional safety items are too costly. However, many promotional safety items cost less than five dollars per unit. Many more sell at only five to ten dollars per unit. When you compare this to the cost of other forms of advertising, distributing promotional safety items is an economical way to advertise. Plus, direct advertising usually has a much greater impact on a consumer than a billboard or commercial ad.
Consider this list of promotional safety items, categorized by price, when deciding on one or more that will best suit your own business:
* Less than five dollars: Basic travel first aid kits fit easily in a glove compartment, car storage console, handbag or brief case. Your business information will be prominently displayed on the outside of the kit. Other ideas for under five dollars include electronic “flares” or flashers, bike reflectors, safety whistles, reflective tape and stickers and pocket flashlights.
* Five to ten dollars: Car manufacturers and auto safety experts recommend every driver keep an emergency multi tool in the glove compartment. These tools are equipped with window glass break hammers in the event that your car becomes submerged in water. They also have a seat-belt cutter which allows you to free yourself from your seatbelt, should it become jammed in an accident. Other mid-priced promotional safety item ideas include high-beam flashlights, digital tire gauges, smoke detectors, reflective safety vests and basic tool kits.
* Ten to twenty dollars: Deluxe highway emergency kits (which include tools, flares and jumper cables), safety lanterns, auto cleaning kits and deluxe first aid kits (complete with tourniquets, gauze, splints and bandages with clips) make excellent thank you gifts for those extra-loyal customers.
No matter what your advertising budget, there’s a promotional safety item that fits it. Nothing tells your customers you care like closing your transaction by handing them something that will help them with their personal emergency preparedness plan. You’ll be helping others while helping your business at the same time.
Jenny Schweyer is a freelance writer from the Pacific Northwest.
Posted in Disaster Preparation
It is a widely known fact that America is a litigious country. There is no shortage of stories concerning unnecessary, or even ridiculous court cases (think fresh-brewed coffee is hot). Even small businesses are targeted for litigation, which makes electronic discovery very important to owners and employees alike. For Geneva Roth Ventures entity Digital Current, it is their reason for being in business.
Because of the increase in electronic data over the past two decades, eDiscovery was the subject of amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in 2006. With the wide range of stored electronic data and the advances in the ways in which they are produced, the Rules concerning eDiscovery most likely will see additions and amendments on a regular basis in the future.
Electronic discovery is the pre-trial phase of litigation in which each party can request electronic documents as evidence. In the old days, it may have been referred to as a paper trail, but today has been replaced by e-mail, texts and tweets, along with information on websites. Basically anything produced or stored electronically falls into eDiscovery. While you may have been able to deny making a statement years ago, you can’t deny e-mailing anything which can be used against you simply because it has been recorded electronically.
“The power of e-mail is that it can take the casual and informal thoughts of a corporate leader and archive them as statements with prior knowledge and devious intent once the SEND button is pressed,” Leland Macon wrote in his blog. Macon is the President of Digital Current, a division of Geneva Roth Ventures. The company has offices in St. Louis and Kansas City and provides digital document storage and eDiscovery services for companies in a wide variety of industries, including legal, medical and insurance. But really, Macon says, any small business would benefit from having eDiscovery plans in place.
Small business owners often disregard preparation for litigation due to cost. More pressing matters, such as utilities, inventory, and human resources take precedence. They see it more as a “what if” cost, one that can be put off till it happens. Unfortunately, lack of preparation not only hinders the owner’s defense during litigation, it also proves to be more expensive.
An unfortunate byproduct of litigation, and a costly one, is that it affects the company’s ability to do business as usual. During preparation, the owner and the employees will be concentrating on supplying information to the attorneys, and not on filling orders, customer service, and other day-to-day aspects of their jobs. The business, in effect, cannot grow during litigation if the company is not adequately prepared.
The best advice, Macon says, is to contact a reputable eDiscovery service. Check references and make phone calls to existing clients. Call attorneys who have worked with the company to make sure it provides accurate data and thorough processes. The best plan is to be prepared for that “what if” situation. “While we’re able to help many companies who call us after they’ve been sued,” Macon said, “it’s much better from a cost perspective to do it prior to litigation.”
Joel Weaver is the Community Manager for Geneva Roth Ventures.
Posted in Disaster Preparation
Tagged business, discovery, Electronic, Owners, preparedness, Small, Vital
Disasters can happen anywhere at any time. The public doesn’t usually get a lot of notice before a disaster strikes, so you must be prepared in advance and know what to do quickly if there is an emergency.
>> Here are 5 simple steps that you can take to prepare your pets and reduce the level of stress and worry for your entire family to a minimum.
>> Get a Pet Emergency Supplies Kit.
Have it readily accessible and make sure it consists of at least the following items:
Pet first aid kit that will cover your pets’ emergency medical needs. If your pets take any medications, add some extra supplies.
Food (in water proof container) and water, 3-day ration.
Collars with ID tags – make sure the information is current and updated. You might consider microchipping as permanent identification as collars get lost.
Safety harness and leash.
Sanitation Items.
Rescue Pet Decals – to alert rescue teams to save your pets inside the house.
Comfort toys and blankets to take with your pets if you have to evacuate.
>> Pack a picture of your pets in case you get separated.
It will help rescue workers to identify and reunite you with your pets faster.
>> Get your pets familiar with their carriers or crates.
Usually, pets associate them with visits to the vet and become stressed at the first site of them. Let your pets play in the carrier or get them some treats to make the transition easier when the time comes.
>> Know your pets hiding places in and out of the house.
At the first warning of a disaster, you might consider putting them in one room in case you have to leave in a hurry.
>> Have a Family Emergency Plan Ready:
Map out a get-away plan: how you pack your pets, where you go.
Check with the nearby shelters, veterinary hospitals, and hotels to see if they would take your pets in an emergency.
Develop a pet care buddy system – arrange for friends or extended family to take your pets in if you must evacuate in a shelter that doesn’t allow pets for health issues. Instruct your caretakers on the location of the emergency supplies kit and anything else you might find useful.
Learn about various disasters that could strike your particular area. You might have to wait home longer before getting an order to evacuate, so get some extra supplies of food and water.
If you have to evacuate, take your pets with you if possible.
For more information please visit http://www.PetsReady.com
When a disaster strikes, are you prepared? Disasters can happen anywhere at any time. The public doesn’t usually get a lot of notice before a disaster strikes, so you must be prepared in advance and know what to do quickly if there is an emergency.
Here`s a handy Disaster Preparedness Checklist and a List of Most Important Pet Care Numbers. A cat owner or a dog owner, one pet or multiple pets, this list should help you get an idea of how prepared you are and point you in the right direction. Get Prepared NOW so you don`t have to worry later!
N.B.: A printer-friendly version of this article is also available on our Website.
* Make sure your pets I.D. tags are current
* Update your pets immunization cards
* Make a list of your pets medications
* Have your pets first aid kit ready
* Stack up on emergency food and water supplies
* Pack at least two travel bowls
* Get a flashing collar/ID tag to find your pet quickly
* Pack a picture of your pets in case you get separated.
* Get a safety harness and leash.
* Know your pets hiding places in and out of the house.
* Develop a pet buddy system. Pets, unlike service animals, may not be allowed in emergency shelters. Talk to your family, friends and neighbors. Plan how you will help each other in an emergency.
* Designate an out-of-state and a local friend or relative as contacts. A contact can be used by family members or others to call if you are separated from each other. Identify a location where you can reunite.
* Place Rescue Pet Decals on your windows and doors to alert rescue teams to save your pets inside the house
Important Pet Care Numbers
National Animal Poison Control Center Hotline: (888) 426-4435 (24/7/365)
American Animal Hospital Associations (AAHA): (800) 883-6301
American Humane Association (AHA): (800) 227-4645
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA): (212) 876-7700
American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA): (847) 925-8070
Emergency Animal Rescue Service (EARS): (800) 440-EARS
Humane Society of the United States (HSUS): (202) 452-1100
Help Me Find My Pet: (866) 699-FIND (3463)
Pet Finders (PetFinder.com): (800) 666-5678
Other Important Numbers to Write Down Local Pet Clinic/Emergency Room:
Your Veterinarian:
Emergency Contact:
After seeing the terrible images of animals endangered in Katrina, Deborah and her family decided to start a website to help you protect the most helpless members of your family.
Please Visit my site http://www.PetsReady.com for more tips on how to get your pets ready TODAY!
