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Laura Armbruster provided our area meeting attendees with a lot of information about search engine optimization basics. The sessions, held in Dallas and Fort Worth, gave us the basic understand we need to move forward with confidence. Now, when we need to chat with our web designers or other professionals who help with online marketing, we know what to ask!
Laura let us know that we can help our web sites by:
- Using meta tags - such as the title tag, description tag, and keywords
- How to find some free tools to grade our web site
- What metrics are important to understand to improve our web site grade
There was a lot to take in, but overall we now know if our web site is working hard enough, and some easy tips to make it work harder!
Mica May is the owner and creative director of Mica May Design, a boutique graphic and web design firm. She is both a dreamer and a doer, and she absolutely loves what she does. As a boutique graphic design firm, Mica May Designs handles all types of projects, from company logos and re-branding to corporate identities.
Whether she is whipping out a new logo for a client or dreaming up an elegant coffee table book, a blank slate is her favorite canvas. Her creative energy and spunky personality are forward thinking and she is always making her next project the best one yet.
Mica believes in investing a lot of time in learning about her clients and their businesses so she can provide them with the best design possible. As Mica puts it, she and her team are simply "crazy" about graphic design. They mix new design trends with the integrity of classic designs giving their clients the best of all design worlds. They love a challenge, and always strive for perfection. Her clients always experience the "WOW" - that moment when they realize their dream of "I'll know it when I see it" is given to them by Mica May Designs.
She is currently one of the graphic designers for the Junior League of Dallas and she has another company, May Books, that creates very unique, yet highly practical, notebooks. All May Books use partially recycled paper, making them environmentally friendly.
Hana Laurenzo is the owner of Teneo Linguistics Company. She has an M.A. in translatology and linguistics, is a certified interpreter to the European Commission and the European Court of Justice. Among her many other activities and interests are teaching classes for interpreters at TCU, working as a certified OPI tester (ACTFL) and volunteering as a CASA of Tarrant County.
About TLC
TLC was founded in 2005 as a full-service translation and localization business, serving local, national and international clientele. Currently, we provide translation, localization, multilingual DTP and transcription services in over 60 different languages, addressing the growing demand for high quality documents with worldwide use. Typically, these include marketing materials, product literature, website content, legal documents, etc.
TLC’s emphasis is on delivering consistent messages not only across languages but also across cultures. We use a multiple-tier quality assurance process that results in a linguistically, socially, and culturally appropriate translation.
During the last couple of years, TLC has won several different awards, including the Small Business of the Year for “outstanding business practices, innovative products and community involvement”, the Mayor’s Global Business Award for “services that link diverse cultures through global communications” and the Established Business of the Year (NAWBO DFW). TLC has been a member of NAWBO since 2006.
Last year, we were awarded a major local contract and became the translation provider of choice for Texas Health Resources, an umbrella organization for a number of local hospitals and clinics.
TLC has also been investing into the latest technology used in the translation industry which enables us to maintain 100% consistency and high translation quality; at the same time, we have been able to save our repeat clients up to 40% of translation cost over time.
For 2010, we are renewing our commitment to traditional linguistic craftsmanship of our translation services, integrity, and lasting relationships with our customers and our people. The market clearly shows the long-term potential of the translation industry and we will continue to focus our efforts, time, and resources on enhancing TLC’s position in that business environment.
This is not your typical workshop...come prepared to take a close look at your company. Maybe the problem is your sales force.... or maybe it's YOU! In just three short hours, you will learn more about growing your sales organization than in an entire lifetime of business! You’ll discover the top five things on which sales managers should be spending 85% of their time. Discover:
- If you're existing salespeople have what it takes to sell in this economy and get you to your goals.
- To see the difference between salespeople who might sell vs. those who actually will.
- How to spot the sales winner in the first twenty minutes of the first interview.
- The health and viability of your sales opportunity pipeline.
- How to prevent ever being held hostage by any person, market condition or competitor again.
- If you have the right people in the right roles.
$79.00 (includes lunch, manual, and workbook)
DECEMBER 17, 2009 10:00AM-1:30PM
Acuity Training Center 2727 LBJ Freeway, Suite 1005 Dallas, TX 75234
REGISTER TODAY Spots are limited. Please contact L'areal by calling 972.960.8695 ext 222 to reserve your spot.
KEYNOTE Speaker: Tom Niesen, Acuity Systems
The following Alert is provided by our Corporate Partner, Haynes and Boone, LLP.
On November 6, 2009, the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 (H.R. 3548) (the "Act") was signed into law. The Act provides taxpayers (including corporate and non-corporate taxpayers) with a special election to carry back net operating loss ("NOL") deductions for up to 5 years, rather than 2 years, as generally is permitted. To read the full alert, please visit the Publications section of our Web site.
NAWBO member Paula McIntyre, President of My Personal Valet, is featured in the latest issue of D Magazine's sister publication D CEO. The article entitled, "You Need to Know," explains that "My Personal Valet is a lifestyle-management firm that works with both individuals and corporations, offering the use of personal assistants to perform time-consuming tasks and errands."
Congratulations NAWBO member Paula McIntyre on being featured in D CEO. Check out the entire article by clicking this link: D CEO "You Need to Know."
And, visit the My Personal Valet website to view the list of the many, many services MPV offers. You'd be surprised what Paula and her team of personal assistants can do for you to "give you back your Saturday."
The following Alert comes from our Corporate Partner, Haynes and Boone, LLP and outlines actions for plan sponsors that must be taken by November 30, 2009.
Dear Clients and Friends,
The attached Alert outlines the actions that plan sponsors must take by November 30, 2009 relating to the waiver of 2009 required minimum distributions for defined contribution plans, such as 401(k) plans. To read the full alert, please visit the Publications section of our Web site. If you have any questions regarding 2009 required minimum distributions, please contact one of the attorneys listed in the Alert. Thank you.
Employee Benefits/Executive Compensation Practice Group
Haynes and Boone, LLP
Debbie Mrazek lit a fire under our "sales chairs" in the October Council meetings with some great tools and exercises to kick start or improve upon our companies' sales strategies.
From "Getting Started Assessments" to learning how to implement a sales forecast, Mrazek provided workable resources that attendees could take with them and implement within their businesses.
For those that did not attend a Council meeting you sure did miss out on an inspiring and motivating two hours. Mrazek was gracious enough to provide us with links to some of her material here.
White Paper: Prescription for Healthy Sales: Click Here
Sales Forecast Form: Click Here
Debbie Mrazek is offering a free gift to NAWBO members: Click Here
Thank you Debbie Mrazek for your time and valuable resources to NAWBO!
NAWBO member Tom Niesen, CEO of Acuity Systems, Inc., is featured in the latest issue of the Dallas Business Journal with an article entitled, "Using Words Effectively to Close a Sale."
Niesen suggests putting words into your prospect's mouth is not a good idea, although in today's stagnant economy, "putting words into your prospect's mouth may be the only way to dispel the sales objections."
Under the headings of "Uncover the right words," "Put yourself into your prospect's shoes," and "Decide in advance what your answer to 'So What?' should be," Niesen gives sound suggestions and advice on how to come up with the right words and the right answers to sales objections.
Check it out on Page 19 of the Dallas Business Journal.
Laura Armbruster provided our area meeting attendees with a lot of information about search engine optimization basics. The sessions, held in Dallas and Fort Worth, gave us the basic understand we need to move forward with confidence. Now, when we need to chat with our web designers or other professionals who help with online marketing, we know what to ask! 
There was a lot to take in, but overall we now know if our web site is working hard enough, and some easy tips to make it work harder!
