Go To The Mill Creek Garage Sale This Saturday

Mill Creek Garage Sale

Are you free this coming weekend? If your answer is yes, then come and join the Mill Creek Garage Sale this Saturday May 4th. Thousands of residents will put their personal items up for sale, hoping to finally get rid of them and make a bit of cash at the same time. Organizers expect an equal number of bargain hunters to come, some even arriving all the way from Canada.

This Saturday’s event is not just for Mill Creek residents and bargain hunters. If you’re a businessman or an entrepreneur, you can definitely look forward to the following aside from finding great bargains. 

Meeting New People

The Mill Creek Garage Sale will provide you with a great venue for socializing and networking. You may meet your next partner, affiliate, or client from the community. You have been networking too much on LinkedIn and spending too much time on Facebook and Twitter. Now it’s time to get some fresh air and meet real people for a change.

Getting Fresh Ideas

Whatever the nature of your business, community activities are great for meeting people and learning about the locale. You can gain new insights about the city, which you will never find in books or the Internet. If you’re looking for something that will inspire your or influence your next venture, why not drop by Mill Creek this weekend? You may come across a useful furniture piece or a trinket you’ll treasure for life.

Helping The Local Economy

Events like this help encourage the flow of goods and revitalize the local economy. Whether or not you can afford to buy brand new stuff, going for old ones certainly won’t hurt.  Aside from your patronage, your presence also means a lot. You can do a lot this coming Saturday, like helping people sell their items; aiding volunteers manage the crowds, or donating your own items to the Goodwill Trailer.

The Mill Creek Garage Sale has been running for over 30 years. It’s held bi-annually, with the next one scheduled in October. There’s actually an interesting story to how the garage sale started. If you want to know about it – and enjoy the abovementioned activities – then join the event!

Hope to see you there!

Related articles

• 5 Tips for Planning a Successful Yard Sale (community.ally.com)

No Idea Is Too Small

SafetyTat is a waterproof, peel-and-stick temporary tattoo that allows parents to write their contact details to reconnect with their kids easily in case of separation. It may also be used to provide information about their kids, like food allergy or special needs.

Michele Welsh stumbled upon the idea during one Labor Day Weekend while she was out with her family at an amusement park. To ease her security concerns about her three small children, she wrote her mobile phone number on each of their arms. In case they get separated from one another, the person who finds them may easily get in touch with her.

The day turned out great and the whole family remained together until the end. Michele had to rewrite the number several times, though, because the information on their arms, written using a ballpoint pen, either smeared or washed off. Some parents who saw what she did loved the idea. Eventually, SafetyTat was born and ensuring a child’s safety has never been reassuring for parents and fun for kids.

The founding story of SafetyTat reminds aspiring businessmen and entrepreneurs out there that no idea is too small. Most of the time, it’s often the smallest, overlooked things that give rise to business empires or usher in new eras. Even though SafetyTat didn’t accomplish either, it certainly made a big difference in how parents address safety issues with their kids.

What’s interesting about the SafetyTat is it’s a simple idea. It didn’t involve any scientific breakthroughs or innovations in digital technology. It’s just a sticker – but a sticker that addressed a need and was backed by solid marketing and a strong sense of purpose for its target market.

In a world where it seems everything has been done, there’s always a place for simple ideas. We’re saturated with scientific and technological advancements that it’s sometimes better to go back to basics and bring back the fun in things. If you’re an aspiring businessman or entrepreneur looking for fresh ideas, try turning away from the ambitious ones and develop simple ones instead.

We work towards helping businesses achieve their goals and actualize their own vision for the world.

The Intricacies of Buying a Bankrupt Company

Patrick Dempsey’s purchase of Tully’s Coffee once again made headlines earlier this weekend.  This time, the reports are about his group running into ‘obstacles’ regarding the sale. Quite frankly, we expected this kind of scenario: The company in question filed for bankruptcy and one of the losing bidders is one of the biggest players in the industry.

What we’re witnessing, however, is part of the often intricate process of acquiring a bankrupt company. What Dempsey’s group Global Baristas is facing happens all the time. And if you look closely at the situation instead of simply listening to speculations, you may get an insight or two should you decide to purchase a bankrupt company soon.

Company’s previous dealings resurface

Global Baristas’ main ‘obstacle’ is about the coffee chain’s dealings with Boeing. Tully’s has branches in Boeing facilities and the aerospace company is offering coffee cards privileges through payroll deductions. Although Boeing explains that their deal is a ‘non-issue’ in the negotiation, it certainly makes the process a bit longer.

What you can learn from this scenario is that previous dealings will resurface – sooner, if not later. When you purchase a company, its partners, affiliates, and other key players can affect the speed and smoothness of your negotiations. Whatever happens, you have to deal with them one way or another.

Competitors can strike back

Global Baristas made public about the obstacles it’s currently facing as part of the response to the status conference requested by its two rival bidders. AgriNurture Inc. and Earthright Holdings USA LLC (ANI), together with Starbucks, wants to know how the deal is going and when it will close. The rival bidders also want to know if Tully’s is still interested in the backup bid if the deal falls through.

In most business dealings, competitors refuse to give up the fight. They will always be there in the sidelines, ready to strike when the time is right. In Global Barista’s case, their competitors are using the slow negotiations to strengthen the possibility of getting the deal. So when you win a bid – especially over a global brand – such challenges are inevitable.

Costs can go beyond what you expected

According to reports, Dempsey’s group shelled out an additional $350,000 to keep the coffee chain operating while it negotiates the sale. Tully’s filed for bankruptcy after all and as a prospective new owner, Gobal Baristas has to take responsibility and keep the business running.

If you’re planning to be an investor, you have to be prepared to pay additional costs during the acquisition period. Most of the time, it’s necessary. You have to set a limit, though, or else you may end up paying more and become bankrupt yourself.

In times like these when many companies are up for sale, you will be tempted to invest. The company often increases in value once the economy and the company itself stabilizes. If you plan to invest anytime soon, remember the intricacies we have indicated above. These can help you secure success in your transaction and maximize the return for your investment.

Using Positive Thinking to Get Started on Your Startup

Getting started on your own business can be tough. This is especially true if you have no idea what to do. But when you think about it, owning a business involves taking risks on a regular basis. So when it comes to getting started, you should take it as your first step to becoming a success.

If you’ve been putting off your plans and struggling to get enough courage to do it, you know there’s only one person who can convince you to finally do so – yourself. So instead of giving you tips on what to do about your startup, we’re giving you a few insights on what to do with yourself instead.

It all starts with changing your mind and having a more positive outlook in life. If you think positive thinking is just one way to repress your emotions or run away from your worries, you are very much mistaken. Positive thinking can help you overcome what has been stopping you in the first place.

Dealing with Doubts

Self-doubt is one of the biggest obstacles to achieving your goals. The unpleasant feeling is especially strong if you have no knowledge about business and you have no one else to back you up.

In situations like these, remember that success is one of your birthrights. Believing in yourself will cause a dynamic shift with your relationship to your goals and life itself.

Although skeptics always point out how unhealthy it is to prop up one’s thoughts, you’ll be surprised with just how many of them actually need to be removed so you can have a clear perception of things.

Focusing on Opportunities

Have you seen those people who can’t seem to shake off their bad luck? Have you met those who keep on succeeding, who keep on getting what they want, and who keep on winning?

The truth is you hold the power to attract people, objects, and situations you want in your life. If you stop expecting the worst and start trusting the world, you will see that everything you need is right in front of you.

If you need help with your startup, think positive as this will open your eyes. This mindset will help you meet the right partners and clients. It will enable you to generate the idea, concept, or solution you need for any type of situation.

Taking Action

Thinking positive things is one thing – but taking the right actions is another. If you’re expecting certain results in your life, you must not forget to take action to bring yourself closer to it.

Whenever you want something to happen, it’s important that you know how to receive it. Sitting on the couch all day will not attract the investor you need – even if you sustain a high level of positive thinking. You must do your part by making calls and setting up appointment with the right people.

If you can’t seem to get started on your startup business, you must make the necessary changes in yourself first. Even if the opportunities and the help you need are right in front of you, they will simply be useless if you don’t know how to receive them.

Positive thinking is, therefore, letting go of the things that prevent you from reaching your goals. So if you truly want to work on your startup, be willing to change your mindset. You’ll be surprised at the difference it can make in yourself and in your life.

Insights from MSU’s Misspelling Gaffe

The Missouri State University (MSU) made headlines last week – but not for the right reasons. Earlier this year, the institution handed out 6,000 free book bags with the word ‘university’ misspelled not on the text but the logo itself.

Although making mistakes is human nature, it’s not acceptable if an institution’s reputation is at stake. No one would also put up with any type of excuse when thousands of dollars are budgeted for the project.

Mistakes happen all the time – but the probability of their occurrence can be decreased. If you take a look at MSU’s mistake, there are actually a few insights worth remembering. These will not just help you prevent mistakes, but help ensure overall success for your business.

Getting a professional graphic artist

MSU’s book bag logo was reportedly designed by its marketing manager. Although we’re not privy to the guy’s graphic design skills, we’re pretty sure marketing and designing are two different things.

When it comes to logo design, short-changing has its consequences. So instead of settling for a second-rate designer or employing a DIY approach, hiring a professional graphic artist is safer. The best ones take ownership of their work and will never let mistakes like this see the light of day.

Hiring a reputable printing vendor

Although MSU is the one getting flak from this gaffe, the vendor is partly responsible for the mistake. Again, we don’t have all the details about the issue. But the folks over the printing company should have noticed something as glaring as a misspell on the logo.

Hiring a reputable printing company definitely prevents mistakes like this from happening. Having the communication lines open between you and your vendor is also important. This will facilitate the completion of the project and ensure in getting the best quality for the results.

Setting up an accountability strategy

The past few months has been rough for MSU, especially in August after the bookstore’s former manager was forced to resign after half a million went missing. In the institution’s most recent embarrassment, the bookstore reportedly handed out about 6,000 bags despite the misspelled name and destroyed the remaining 2,500.

When asked who is accountable for the mistake, reps said that the former manager had nothing to do with it. Yet the mistakes happened before the new one took office. As for the other gaffes, the blame was pointed to the bookstore staff.

Although the mistake could always be dismissed as a negative effect of the transition or lack of turnover from the outgoing and incoming managers, someone should still be held accountable. The project is worth $70,844 after all.

Setting up an accountability strategy is always helpful in this case. The goal is not to find someone to blame when something bad happens. But to make sure someone dedicated and dependable is overseeing things and upholding the reputation of the business or institution.

Dry Erase Boards: Why They’re Still Useful

In spite of the digital visual technologies available these days, dry erase boards remain a necessity in the workplace. The conveniences they offer can’t be easily replaced by any device. They may not show flashy animations like digital boards or other similar devices, but they certainly do a great job at doing what they do. And that is displaying valuable information for everyone in the office to see.

If you think dry erase boards have become mere wall ornaments, you’ll be surprised at how much they can help you accomplish. They have changed enormously through the years and have successfully made themselves essential to many businesses.

Making Presentations Possible

Dry erase boards primarily offer a writing space for instruction and presentation. This is why they have become a fixture in schools, offices, and other work environment. Although you may have digital devices for your business meetings and presentations, dry erase boards are very much useful. They can complement your overhead and video projectors by providing a viewing surface. You can also write down important information during your presentation without worrying about technical problems.

Facilitating Processes and Communications

Other than making presentations possible, dry erase boards can keep track and take note of changes in processes. Your sales team, for instance, can use these boards to keep track of their performance and see if the members are reaching their sales target. Your operations team, on the other hand, can use it to cascade progress updates about a crucial project. Whatever line of work or type of projects you have, you can count on dry erase boards to facilitate processes and communications.

Enabling Brand Consistency

Dry erase boards are highly customizable. From the materials, to the colors, to the shapes, you can actually use them to decorate your office. You can even use them for marketing your company and establishing your brand.  In fact, dry erase boards may enable brand consistency. Whether you want to display your logo or provide information about your products, you can effectively do so with the help of these tools.

Dry erase boards are included in our specialty services. Call us at 425-481-4900 if you need custom boards for your office. Our company is one of the top providers of graphic design and printing services in the city and we are completely committed to the success of our clients.

Recipes for Business Success

The article on Mallow Artisan Marshmallows on The Seattle’s Times website definitely caught our attention. The feature was just in time for Valentine’s Day and reminds you that you can have both a happy relationship and a successful career.

While it’s not certain that you can have a serendipitous love story like Brian and Kyra’s, you can have a successful business just like they do. If you read the article very closely, you’ll find that there are mainly three ingredients to success. The recipe is up to you, but you need these three basics to secure success for your business.

Purpose

The idea for their business started with Kyra wanting to have chocolate-covered marshmallows available in stores all year round. Although it may sound like an accidental premise, she actually found a viable business idea. It addresses a market demand in their area. Although the couple evidently exerted effort in the product development and marketing, they didn’t have a hard time selling the marshmallows – because their products sold themselves.

Passion

People will often tell you that finding your passion will eventually lead to cash flow. All you have to do is do the things that make you happy and everything else follows. In reality, however, this is not always the case. If there’s one thing you need to know about passion, you should to find a degree of compromise to make money out of it. Brian, for instance, wasn’t passionate about cooking – he loved chemistry. But he applied his obsession of chemicals and used it to perfect a product that a market so desperately needs.

Partnership

If there’s one element of success that’s easily overlooked, it’s partnership and collaboration. If you want to be successful in any business, you have to recognize the importance of other people and acknowledge the help you need from them. Not all successful people have college degrees, sales skills, or even talent. What you’ll notice though, is they’re surrounded by people that complements their personality or completes their existence. In Brian and Kyra’s case, it’s their support system that makes things work. Running marshmallow business is not that easy, but their relationship adds that distinct sweetness to every product they make.

Signs Now Mill Creek actually uses the same ingredients, but uses a different type of recipe to secure success. A couple is behind the business after all. One day this blog will tell the owners’ story in detail. And hopefully it will inspire you to have your own recipe for a successful business as well.

Are business cards still useful?

Smartphones have made a lot of things obsolete. Landline phones, gaming consoles, and media devices are no longer selling like they used to. Magazines, encyclopedia, and even paperback novels are not exactly flying off the shelves.

Among the many things we lost in the digitizing of information are business cards, which were once a necessity for every professional. In spite of the high-tech scanning hardware and the imaging software available, we still believe these small paper cards hold much power. Technology these days may be highly advanced, but they still serve their purpose quite effectively.

People still prefer paper

Although almost everyone owns a smartphone these days, not everyone knows how to maximize the business card feature they have. If they do, they would still prefer having the physical card than the digital version of it. Digital technology may offer many conveniences, but some people prefer to leave some aspects of their lives as they are. Because of this, it is hard to standardize the exchange of contact information and completely get rid of business cards for good.

Business cards still make an impression

Can you imagine yourself admiring a meticulously designed business card on your phone screen? Wouldn’t you prefer to hold the physical card right in your fingers? The feel of paper is still different and the card itself speaks volume despite the lack of animation or any multimedia effect.

Many people still look forward to the artistry found in business cards. The choice of paper, the texture, and the cut are things which cannot be communicated by any digital technology. If one application can, wouldn’t you appreciate receiving a well-designed card instead of just a digital and intangible file?

A business card is an artwork in itself. It is still an effective way of establishing your brand. Before you leave it out of your business set, think about how often your client will look at your card on their smartphones. If you cannot confidently say at least once after giving it to them, then expect it to simply rot in their device’s memory storage.

More than Words: Why Typography Matters

If you are going to make your brand name your logo, make sure you are extremely careful with its typography. Believe it or not, the lines, the point size, and the spacing say a lot about your brand. Text – even in the absence of images – is still a visual. No matter how many characters, it is still worth a thousand words and triggers responses from a person’s subconscious.

People can tell

People do not just pay attention to the meaning of the word but also the way it is presented to them. The small details and the overall look of your logo can actually make or break your business. People these days can tell if you have hired a professional artist or put a few things together in MS Word yourself.

If the impression you made is the former, you may well be setting your business up for failure – even before it started. Typography may seem unimportant, but it actually lets the world know what your business is all about in the most subtle yet affecting way.

Fonts don’t lie

The typography in your logo can stir up responses from the subconscious mind of its viewer. An elegant script, for instance, can elicit sensuousness and pleasure. Serifs, on the other hand, can evoke a long-standing reputation and a range of services that cater to high markets. Clean, simple text can denote openness and accessibility while custom ones depend on the application.

These days, millions of well-made fonts are available for commercial use. But just because they look good doesn’t mean they make an excellent choice for your company. In most cases, companies miss the point of what typography is all about.

If you, for instance, simply choose something that looks professional but does not go with your company’s image, you run the risk of looking like a knock-off. Fonts don’t lie and their typography certainly cannot cover up your shortcomings. They will, in fact, reflect and show them for all the world to see.

While it’s always convenient to have a do-it-yourself approach to creating brand name logos, you need to understand that typography always matters. If you want to make a lasting impression and successfully establish your brand, there’s no other way but to seek professional help.

Why Traditional Advertising is Still Important Today

In spite of the massive growth of online advertising these past few years, traditional media is still effective and very much alive. Outdoor signs, newspapers and magazines, and television and radio still reach a wide range of audiences and target specific markets for different types of companies.

If you are planning to allocate a huge chunk of advertising budget solely on search engines and social networking sites, you better think again. Traditional advertising is still important in any brand strategy. Without it, most campaigns will fail considerably or return only with meager results.

Accomplish Different Goals at Once

A small pamphlet can go a long way. It can launch a new business, expand an existing one, or reintroduce a company while sending out messages to different markets – all at once. The good thing about traditional advertising is it reaches a lot of people and anyone can relay the message to the intended market any time.

Preceding Other Forms of Advertising

The most popular campaigns on the social networks usually start with traditional forms of media. A scandalous billboard, a shocking newsprint, or catchy television commercial usually makes an impression on people first before being shared and spread via Facebook or Twitter. Traditional advertising usually starts the hype while other forms only pick it up.

Expressing Commitment

Having paid advertisements not merely shows a company’s capacity to fund its promotional campaigns. More than anything else, it shows everyone its commitment in nurturing its brand. A piece of ad, no matter how small or simple, is like a subtle wink. It tells everyone that the business is very much alive and is ready to take on the challenges in the coming years.

Traditional advertising is and will always be important for any business. It accomplishes many goals, precedes other forms of advertising, and helps a business show its commitment to nurturing its brand. Although online marketing efforts are becoming more widely used, paid advertising will continue to be effective. The best way to make the most of them is combine them into one effective brand strategy and enjoy the benefits each of them offer.