Category Archives: Blog With BEB

Run for Rama

HELP US RAISE MONEY TO FIGHT OVARIAN CANCER

RUN FOR RAMA – MAY 5, 2018

 

This race is about creating and raising awareness about ovarian cancer.  It is the cancer with the lowest survival rate and has no cure. The staff of Business Extension Bureau (BEB) are raising funds and participating in this event to pay homage to Rama Moore, whom we lost on Christmas day last year to this devastating disease.  Rama worked for our family owned business for over 40-years, and is missed today.  Won’t you join us in helping to raise money to combat this type of cancer that often lays in wait for long periods of time before being detected.  Help us to honor the life of a wonderful woman who gave so much love and was the “face and voice of BEB” for many years, our Rama Ray Moore.

Also, you don’t have to be a “BEBer” (an employee of BEB) to join us for this fabulous event.  Join our team and bring the family with you to take part in this important gathering.  It is a Run AND a Walk so that everybody at every fitness level can enjoy.

Our goal is to raise $1,500 – please donate as much as you can today.  All donations are tax deductible.   We are grateful to you.

Go to RUNFORRAMA.COM to donate or to join our team!

 

UID’s Explained

A unique identifier (UID) is a numeric or alphanumeric string that is associated with a single entity within a given system. UIDs make it possible to address that entity, so that it can be accessed and interacted with.

Examples of Unique Identifiers:

URI-Uniform Resource Identifier is a unique identifier that makes content addressable on the Internet by uniquely targeting items, such as text, video, images and applications.

URL-Uniform Resource Locator is a particular type of URI that targets Web pages so that when a browser requests them, they can be found and served to users.

UUID-Universal Unique Identifier is a 128-bit number used to uniquely identify some object or entity on the Internet.

GUID-Global Unique Identifier is a number that Microsoft programming generates to create a unique identity for an entity such as a Word document.

UDID-Unique Device Identifier is a 40-character string assigned to certain Apple devices including the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch.

IoT What Does it Mean?

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical and digital machines, objects, animals or people that are provided with unique identifiers and the ability to transfer data over a network without requiring human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction.

A Thing can be any natural or man-made object that is assigned an IP address and can transfer data over a network.  A dog that has a microchip implanted or a car that has built-in sensors to alert the driver when a car is too close to stop safely are good examples of a “thing” in the Internet of Things.

IoT has evolved from the convergence of wireless technologies, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), microservices and the internet. The convergence has helped tear down the silo walls between operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT), allowing unstructured machine-generated data to be analyzed for insights that will drive improvements.

PRC is Threatening Your Livelihood

The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act (PAEA) dictated that the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) conduct a study of the past decade to determine if the current system for regulating rates and classes for Market Dominant Postal Products was achieving its objectives.

Those results were published on December 1, 2017 and the PRC concluded that the current system achieved some of its goals, but overall the system has failed.

The PRC issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would give the USPS the authority to raise rates by at least 2% above the CPI for each market dominant rate class for five years.  It also allows for an additional 1% increase if they hit service and productivity standards, and will be required to raise prices for “underwater products” (Periodicals and Nonprofit mailings for example) by a minimum of an additional 2% above the price change authority to move prices toward full-cost coverage over time.  This could drive rate increases for standard letters (officially known as Marketing Mail Letters) up by 27% and flats by more than 40% over the next  five-years.

These proposed changes to the current postage rate ceilings are inflated and threaten the vitality and efficiencies of the postal service and our industry as a whole.

The PRC is an independent agency that has exercised regulatory oversight over the Postal Service since its creation by the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970. It is composed of five Commissioners, each of whom is appointed by the President and subject to confirmation by the US Senate, for a term of six years. To ensure bipartisanship, not more than 3 of the Commissioners can belong to the same political party.

The PRC is tasked with ensuring transparency and accountability of the USPS and fostering a vital and efficient universal mail system.  They act as an independent regulator for engaging postal stakeholders to promote a robust mail system through objective regulatory analyses and decisions.  Normally, the PRC does not have the final say when it comes to postage rate increases.  That is for the USPS Board of Governors.  However, this is not a rate case.  This is a 10-year review of the system which the PRC reigns supreme.

The argument that the USPS has accumulated losses of $59.1 billion include the $54.8 billion needed to prefund their already financially healthy retiree health plan; even though no other entity is required to do the same.

The current regulations force the USPS to reduce costs and raise efficiencies which is needed now more than ever as many economists expect inflation to increase.

Thursday, March 1, 2018 marks the end of a 90-day comment period.  There is another 30-day (one month) period allowed for replies to comments before a ruling can be implemented.

We are very active with industry associations and sit on several industry boards.  Together we are  fighting to prevent this travesty from happening.  The industry will continue to stand united and push the USPS to focus on rate increases specifically tied to cost efficiencies only.  We will keep you abreast of the situation as it unfolds.

 

 

 

 

Content Myth No. 5

There is so much content available, you don’t have to always post original content.  Many bloggers will be happy to “guest blog” on your behalf.  Ask a colleague to pen a quick article on something happening in your industry.  Also, feel free to use another person’s blog or article, just be sure to recognize them and be extra courteous by adding a backlink to their article or site.  You will be (pleasantly) surprised at how many people will reciprocate.

Content Myth No. 4

Content marketing is a process that takes time. You can’t expect to see results overnight. But that doesn’t mean it’s not worth your time, and it certainly doesn’t mean it can’t be measured. Use metrics that will help you measure activity. Pay attention to things like page views, downloads, time on site, subscriptions, paid versus organic search traffic, repeat versus new visitors, social likes and shares and cost per lead.

Content marketing is an extremely powerful tool and is an excellent resource for organic SEO. It allows you to develop long-lasting relationships with your clients and prospects and is critical at all stages of your customer journey.

Content Myth No.3

Content marketing should be woven into every touchpoint—online and offline—that you have with a customer. It can play an important role in more traditional direct marketing campaigns and even in-person sales meetings. Remember, content marketing is ultimately an experience that you’re creating for your target audience, built around a narrative that ties back to your business.

Inspired by http://www.chiefmarketer.com/5-content-marketing-myths-bust-2018/

Content Myth No. 2

Content marketing is a powerful tool for both acquisition and retention. It’s also a great way to explain a complex process, product or service. B2B’s longer sales cycle means prospects often spend more time at the top of the funnel, creating multiple opportunities for engagement and lead nurturing via content.

Use content to guide prospects along their decision journey and warm them up for a conversation with your sales team when they’re ready. Once converted, create content to welcome new clients or customers and reinforce that they made the right decision. Then strengthen the relationship and keep them engaged with ongoing content.  Exercise your expertise by sharing the latest information or trends.

Inspired by http://www.chiefmarketer.com/5-content-marketing-myths-bust-2018/