The Weberian Apparatus Small Business Economic Trends Survey - NFIB Optimism Index The NFIB Research Foundation has collected Small Business Economic Trends data with quarterly surveys since the 4th quarter of 1973 and monthly surveys since 1986. Survey respondents are drawn from NFIB’s membership. The report is released on the second Tuesday of each month. After February’s Decline, Confidence Up in March The latest Small Business Optimism Index rose 2 points to 93.4, mostly reversing the February decline but failing once again to breach the 95 ceiling that has capped the Index during the recovery. “Overall, the March gain more or less reversed the February decline. The latest Small Business Optimism Index rose 2 points to 93.4, mostly reversing the February decline but failing once again to breach the 95 ceiling that has capped the Index during the recovery. NFIB owners increased employment by an average of 0.18 workers per firm in March (seasonally adjusted), an improvement over February’s 0.11 reading and the sixth positive month in a row.
60 Humorous Print Advertisements to Tickle Your Bones | Onextrap Everyone needs a little humour in their hectic lives and more often than before, advertisers try to inject some fun into their advertisements. Injecting humour into their advertisements does not necessarily mean that the ads are better than others. However, the smart play on words and careful consideration of the ad’s objectives, target audience and market standards, humour can help the advertisement increase effectiveness and widen its receptiveness. When using humour as a creative strategy, advertising firms agree that it increase audience attention, at least on the first few exposures to this form of persuasive communication. Good design communicates meaning. A good print ad should not be too complex but easily interpreted and understood by its target audience. 60 Creative and Humorous Print Ads We’ve put together 60 creative and humorous advertisements and hope you enjoy it as much as we did and help you get those creative juices flowing! Airtel Chase Ancap Autofocus Olympus Baygon Lego
Building Resilient Regions | Harnessing the power of metropolitan regions Birds.com: online guide to birds and bird watching - Bird Specie State, Local Leaders Tout New ED Direction VOL. 126 | NO. 172 | Friday, September 02, 2011 By Bill Dries You have entered an invalid email addressTo:* RequiredFrom:* RequiredMessage: You have entered an invalid email addressFrom (email):* RequiredMessage:* Required Local economic development leaders told Tennessee Gov. “Let me be clear. –Bill HagertyState economic development commissioner And state economic development commissioner Bill Hagerty said the state will remain able to respond to out-of-state prospects for jobs, but will “double down” on its ability to assist existing businesses in the state to expand. The doubling down represents a shift in economic development planning from former Gov. “Every time I come to Memphis the news is better and better,” Hagerty said as he reviewed the “localization” of economic development efforts into nine regions. “Let me be clear. The successor to the Memphis Fast Forward and Memphis ED plan is the Memphis Growth Alliance. University of Memphis President Dr.
Ten Worst and Best Foods Do you want to know the best super foods to eat, for your better health? How to eat right by knowing — with candid and reliable information — what foods to eat regularly, so you are empowered to improve your overall health? Do you ever ask yourself “What should I eat?” Or “How can I choose a healthier diet?” Well, now you can have the latest life-saving information about the foods you eat, because NutritionAction.com’s scientists and nutritionists tell you exactly what’s right — and what’s wrong — with hundreds of foods. Dear health-conscious consumer, Scientific research has proven the relationship between diet and disease. That’s exactly why you should learn what is best to eat. This special free health advice has been compiled especially for you by our expert staff of scientists and nutritionists, so eating the best foods is as easy as buying what’s best in the supermarket. Sweet potatoes top the list of best foods, but why? Act now to get your free health advice about what to eat.
Tier economic strategy put on the table at forum BINGHAMTON — If the goal was to involve the public in producing an economic development plan for the region, the Southern Tier Regional Economic Development Council succeeded Thursday. What remains to be seen, however, is whether the council got the kind of input it will actually use in the five-year strategic plan it must submit to state officials by Nov. 14. The Southern Tier council held its first public forum Thursday at the Binghamton University Downtown Center to collect feedback from area residents. About 60 people showed up, including the heads of companies, work force and business development executives, Empire State Development officials and others. They were encouraged to provide ideas and other comments as part of work groups centered on eight topic areas, as well as fill out slips of paper with suggestions or other feedback regarding the council's strategic plan. An additional $800 million from state agencies also will be available. » Promote local agriculture and tourism.
Delta Launch Report | WISE observatory sheds l WISE observatory sheds lens cap and takes in starlight BY JUSTIN RAYSPACEFLIGHT NOWPosted: December 29, 2009 NASA's new cosmic mapper successfully jettisoned a protective lens cover Tuesday, opening its infrared eyes to Universe for an unprecedented survey in 2010. A United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket delivered the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer spacecraft into polar orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on December 14. The cover was secured atop the Thermos-like bottle structure that holds the observatory's telescope and state-of-the-art detectors in supercold frozen hydrogen. The one-month checkout and preparatory period for the observatory achieved its key milestone when the cover was commanded to separate at about 5:30 p.m. "The cover floated away as we planned," said William Irace, the WISE project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. "It's wonderful to end the year with open WISE eyes," said Peter Eisenhardt, the mission's project scientist at JPL.
Midwest Economy: Innovation and the District’s Food Industries, and "Clean Tech" Conference Announcement « Digging Out of a Hole – A View from Detroit | Main | Beige Book and District Indicators » September 6, 2011 Innovation and the District’s Food Industries, and "Clean Tech" Conference Announcement By David Oppedahl and Bill Testa We all eat, yet the variety of what we eat is mesmerizing. A Regional Strength It is an interesting feature of regional economies that they often continue to be the innovative centers of the industries that were born there. Historically, the Midwest economy is as closely linked with agriculture and the food industry as it is with, say, manufacturing. Today, the innovations of production agriculture remain a legacy feature. Such expenditure figures are not publicly available for individual regions. Occupational specialties vary from state to state. Food Safety is Paramount As the variety and breadth of our diet expand, so do concerns about food safety. The academic and government laboratories of the Midwest are important research partners with the private sector.
FDI Blog In our series regarding the US competitiveness for FDI, we began examining the different drivers behind corporate FDI decisions, followed by a closer look of different views and opinions by various subject matter experts addressing these FDI drivers. Now we continue our assessment with a factual benchmark of the global competitiveness of the United States (US) versus emerging and low cost economies. Based on several comparative global benchmark reports as well as national statistical resources, we have computed and modeled a competitiveness score for all countries under study. To assess the competitiveness of the US we have used Investment Consulting Associates´ (ICA) web-based location benchmarking software product LocationSelector.com. Below are the aggregated location groups that we took into consideration for this benchmark analysis. More specifically, the six location groups consist of several location factors, and in total we modeled 61 location factors. Business Environment Labor
Is Starting A Business Safer Than Your Job? [Infographic] What's Better - Getting a Job or Starting a Business? With a slow economy, many people have turned to entrepreneurship as a means to pay the bills. Which begs the question, what’s better today — getting a job or starting a business? We dug deep to find out the numbers and have compared the risk of starting a business to keeping a job. What do you think? Small Business Loans Made Simple Create a Free Lendio Account Overview “Laid off? “True entrepreneurs reduce risk to the point that action becomes quite logical.” Unemployment Rate: 9.1% 26% of North American workers are self-employedIn 2008 on average 2,356 people went into business for themselves every day.Their ventures accounted for 78% of U.S. businesses SELF-EMPLOYMENT There are only four paths toward business ownership: Start a business from scratchBecome a consultantBuy a non-franchise businessBuy a franchise (the most secure choice) Among the fastest-growing industries are: Reemployment figures: To reduce risk: Incorporated Self-Employed