What the Job Numbers Really Mean

When the economy took a turn for the worse between the fall of 2008 and spring of 2009, several million jobs were lost. At its worst, 800,000 jobs disappeared in a single month. With a far better than expected jobs report released Friday at 236,000 jobs created, the unemployment rate is now down to 7.7%. Although this is far from ideal, the results were better than anticipated. However, the notion of what exactly is required to even make progress is still open to debate:

"Job gains of at least 100,000 a month are needed just to keep up with population growth and prevent the unemployment rate from rising."

source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/economywatch/unemployment-rate-drops-lowest-four-years-1C8767810

A more pessimistic view argues that the country needs to add at least 125K jobs to keep up with population growth and people leaving the jobs market. Suspiciously, once this milestone was reached and actually surpassed, the number required to keep up with population growth suddenly increased again. It seems every time the bar gets raised, the estimated number of jobs needed to reduce the unemployment rate goes up. Nonetheless, the bottom line is these are people not just numbers! Regardless of how you brand it, any gain is better than losing 800,000 jobs a month and that's "x" number more people that will be able to put food on the table for their families! Sure we may still have a long way to go but constantly being negative never solved anything.

85 Years and Still Going

After 85 years, Haskell New York Inc. continues its commitment to the best products and services it can offer. Recently authorized by the DOD (Department of Defense), Haskell sells office furniture and supplies throughout the country and abroad.

The Brooklyn-based firm Haskell New York Inc. sells through its flagship site OfficeSalesUSA.com business supplies as well as specialty items. Haskell is also a participating partner in the AbilityOne program that devotes a portion of its sales to the betterment of people who are blind and have other disabilities.

Holding also a GSA Schedule 75, the company is authorized to sell to both the Federal government and general public. In accordance with TAA compliance and FAR/executive orders, Haskell recently completed its periodic review to ensure that recycled paper sold on their GSA Schedule is not less than 30% and that items with AbilityOne/SKILCRAFT equivalents are swapped for Open Market items.

As a growing office supply and furniture dealer, Haskell knows that to remain successful, the treatment it provides its customers is really key. If it takes spending several hours on just a single issue, Haskell will do whatever it takes to keep its customers happy. Competitive pricing, fast support and courteous responses marks the company as an industry leader and ensures extreme customer loyalty in even the most challenging of times.

Promising Signs for the Economy

The Wallstreet Journal today has reaffirmed a continued trend in increased home prices. With an average of 5% increase nationally, the trend began in the spring and has only become stronger in the summer and fall. Home prices continue to rise because of several factors which include:

• Record low interest rates
• Increased demand as less houses enter the market for sale
• Less abuse by banks processing foreclosures without other options considered such as refinancing and short sales

With employment rising at an average of 146,000 jobs per month and the Federal Reserve likely to increase interest rates sooner rather than later if home prices continue to rise at the expected rate, the next few years will likely see rapid growth in the GDP as a recovery begins to unfold.

Improving Sales on the Internet

Despite obvious signs that a new paradigm has emerged for doing business today, most companies still do not realize how much potential the Internet holds in store. Increased activity on your site means nothing if hits never lead to sales. Being successful on the Internet requires a very different approach to doing business than many traditional models. A successful site must have competitive pricing, fresh/informative content, proper exposure, the right policies and an easy to use checkout. If even one of these factors is not properly considered, sales will greatly lag. Yet this is exactly the way most sites are constructed!

What's the point to creating a great site visually if you're not even trying to be competitive or have no real checkout? Why should visitors buy from you if you make things harder for them to purchase or can't even come close to your top competitor prices? These are questions that often get ignored as well as shipping and return policies which can greatly affect sales positively or in an adverse way.

Whether you have a simple site that just sells a few products or have a large selection of office supply and furniture items, nobody wants to sign up first before making a purchase and the more steps you add, the less likely a conversion will be made. Likewise, if your checkout is not clear or requires too much input from visitors, many people will abandon the cart.

Making the right associations is also key to survival in an online world. If you are not getting satisfactory results pushing your site, maybe it's time to reconsider your marketing associations. With a new year approaching, now is the time to reevaluate how you promote yourself. It may take establishing new relationships but the business is out there. It's just a question of how badly do you want it?

Dairy Prices May Soon be on the Rise

While most people are focused on the fiscal cliff, another important issue is being side-stepped that will likely effect the price of dairy items. The Farm Bill regulates a number of crop subsidies and other issues pertaining to rural America. During the Great Depression, federal action to control farm markets was first enacted as a matter of national security to curtail reliance on foreign powers. Unless Congress takes action soon, the now expired Farm Bill will likely increase the price of milk and other dairy products causing many supermarket, fast food and restaurant prices to increase:

"...the U.S. Department of Agriculture is poised to revert to a 1949 law that would double the guaranteed rate for dairy products, leaving retailers with higher costs to pass onto consumers."

Strange Product Award for 2012

While many people have tried hard to beat the title of Kaboom® BowlBlaster Toilet Bowl Cleaner that goes on purple and turns radioactive green, a new contender has finally emerged. Hot Booties™ warms your feet and keeps you Merry. God I hope they're cleaning these things first before sticking them in the microwave!!! Am I the only one that finds this totally disgusting? Perhaps a Teamster in a Snuggies® would be more repulsive? Nevertheless, if I had to pick, Kaboom's toilet bowl cleaner wins the title. Congratulations guys!!!

End of World and I Feel Fine

As always, I feel sorry for those duped into believing the world would end on Dec. 21. 2012. How many times do we have to go down this path before people realize psychics are non-sense? What's more, I don't believe the Mayans ever had any intention of making it appear as if the end of the world was coming. If their civilization had continued, they probably would have expanded their calendar. Unfortunately, doomsday forecasts are an easy sell and superstition will likely always play a major role in society no matter how far science advances.