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RATE from IB
Georgia’s statewide unem¬
ployment rate dropped by
two-tenths of a point in
October, down to 5.3 percent
over September’s rate of 5.5
percent. The national unem¬
ployment rate for October
was 5.6 percent, up
percent from September.
Georgia added 23,400 jobs
in October, many of those
among seasonal workers in
retail trade and service-related
industries. During the same
period last year,
m i ■ - I.-,. - i — 1 — 1 — 1 I. ......... . i ■
goes on during the
he said.
United Parcel
(UPS), which has
locally, announced 1,200
sonal workers would be
for the season in the
area in a Nov. 28 press
Nationwide, UPS
between 40,000 to
people will be hired
Christmas.
Lastrapes said
ment rates factor into
a business will be able to
RUSH from IB
Take an honest look at
your pipeline and figure out
what is truly closeable for the
remainder of the year,” he
said.
If you’re a sales manager,
sit down with your team and
determine a strategy to close
those deals as early as possi
ble.
But do so knowing that,
despite your best-laid plans,
some deals may run into late
December. It’s up to the sales¬
person to anticipate how to
keep the deal rolling even
when key people are out of the
office.
44 I came up against this
problem one year when a cus
tomer requested a change in
the language of the contract at
the last minute,” Caponi said.
11 I couldn’t get our legal peo
pie on the phone to approve
the change because they were
on vacation.”
To prevent holiday snafus,
know exactly what will need
to happen to close a deal —
and how to reach all the key
players, wherever they might
be.
That includes the processes
0 needed at the buyer’s end, too.
'
‘
FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS —Thursday, December 1,2005
added 15,800 jobs.
Forsyth’s total labor force
for October was 69,542,
reflecting an increase of 334
over September. Unemployed
numbers decreased by 102 —
moving from 2,380 in
September to 2,278 in
October.
Local economic leaders
say the growth of the county
is a major contributing factor
to Forsyth’s continued low
unemployment rate since
with added population comes
enough staff to fill seasonal
needs.
“If there’s high unemploy
ment, it would be easy to find
someone, he said,
[Seasonal] workers have holi¬
day expenses of their own.
The general strategy
would be — if retailers are
having a hard time finding
workers — they would offer
them higher wages or dis¬
counts.
In addition, Lastrapes said
seasonal workers could feel
Here are suggestions for dosing business deals
in December:
• Map out the decision-making process in detail. Identify all of the players that might
be involved, such as finance or legal.
• Know who the decision-makers are and how to contact or send documents to them
during the holiday break, if needed. If you send a document for a signature or an
OK, make sure your contact person is expecting the package.
• Make sure the decision-makers have your personal contact information, too.
• Make sure you also can reach people in your company who might need to be
involved to close the deal. Don’t be caught off guard on Dec. 30 if your prospect
asks for another change in the contract and your people are nowhere to be found.
— Sources: Barry Caponi, DEI Management Group of Dallas (www.dei-dallas.com)
Penny recalled a last
minute glitch he encountered
because of a customer’s newly
implemented enterprise
resource planning, or ERP,
S y S tem.
44 Everybody had signed
off, and I was waiting in the
i obby to p i c k up the paper
work at 4 p . m . on the last day
0 f the quarter,” he said. “But
t h e new ERP system added
sa i e s tax, and the approval
person hadn’t checked the box
that said 'plus tax.
That person was incommu
n j cado and th e deal didn’t get
inked, officially, until the next
quarter. if
The lesson? “Even the
new jobs, particularly in the
service and construction are¬
nas.
“We’re without a doubt
one of the fastest growing
communities in the nation, M
said Cumming-Forsyth
County Chamber of Com¬
merce President James
McCoy. “That leads to a great
economic atmosphere. We
have a great tax structure with
low taxes, great leadership —
it’s just an exciting place to be
now.
the extra work gives them an
edge over other people who
apply for permanent jobs at a
later date. UPS officials
acknowledge holiday workers
could be hired after the end
the season.
U Holiday employees have
an opportunity to apply for a
permanent position after Dec.
31,” states a UPS press
release.
Staff photographer
Freeman contributed to
story.
customer says, ‘Trust me, it’ll
get done,’ you can get
burned,” Penny said.
It’s the salesperson’s job to
educate the buyer on the buy
ing process to anticipate
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I
The joy of holiday
shopping
Photos/Ron Logan
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Left, Sharon McCullough of Alpharetta watches as her daughter
Savannah, 21 months old, plays on a rocking horse at the Belk store
in Lakeland Plaza the day after Thanksgiving. Above and below,
shoppers crowd Parsons in Lakeland Plaza Friday afternoon. Below
at
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Retailer gives $1,000 gift card
to help storm victims at school
By Crystal Ledford
Staff Writer
North Forsyth High School
is the recipient of an award that
will assist economically disad
vantagedstudents,
Principal Nita Giddish said
Tuesday that the school is the
only one in Forsyth County and
one of approximately 80 schools
across the state to receive a Best
guy te@ch Emergency
Response Award.
Under Best Buy’s te@ch
Emergency Response program,
around $3 million has been dis
tributed to K-12 schools across
the nation in $1,000 gift cards.
The cards can be used by the
schools to purchase any product
available at the retailer.
The award program was
developed by Best Buy to help
meet the needs of schools that
have enrolled students displaced
by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and
Wilma. The gift carc[s were dis
tributed to winning schools at
the first of this week.
Review your ratios and
ydur numbers for the past
year,” suggests Penny.
Salespeople are typically bad
at planning because they’re
chasing the ball too hard.
December is a good time
to set goals for 2006 — and
write them down.
Take time to thank peo¬
ple,” said Caponi. “Take a cus¬
tomer out to lunch and take
advantage of the relaxed holi¬
day mood to start them think¬
ing about doing business with
potential delays,
Even if not closing
deals after the 16 th,
people can use the
half of December to
advantage.
MOVIES Wednesday 11/23 Thursday 400 12/1
•
HARRY POTTER A THE GOBLET OF FIRE (PG13) (FRI-SAT 10:00),
12:05,1:40,3:40,5:00,7:1$, 8:15
WALK THE LINE (PG13) (FRI-SAT 10:05), 12:55,3:50,6:55,9:50
YOURS MINE i OURS (PG) (FRI-SAT 10:10), 12:20,2:40,5:05,7:20,9:30
CHICKEN LITTLE (G) (FRI-SAT 10:30,11:15), 12:30,1:10,2:30
3:10,4:45,7:00,9:00
JUST FRIENDS (PG13) (FRI-SAT 10:00), 12:15,2:35,4:55,7:30,9:55
RENT (PG13) (FRI-SAT 10:15), 1:05,4:10,7:05,9:50
ZATHURA(PG) (FRI-SAT 10:05), 12:15,2:25,4:50,7:25,9:45
_
DER AILED (R) (FRI-SAT 10:00), 4:45,7:20,9:50
___
INTHE MIX (PG13) (FRI-SAT 11:00), 5:10,7:35,9:55
SAW II (R) 10:15
****““""HAPPY THANKSGIVING ***********
TICKETS ON SALE UP TO 7 DAYS IN ADVANCE
. ADULTS $8.00 CHILD/SR $6.00
ALL S—thmovlea.eom SEATS BEFORE 6 PM $5.00
678 - 513-4400
w
Giddish said North was
selected for the award after coun¬
selor Brenda LaManque submit¬
ted an application describing the
students who are attending North
as a result of the hurricanes.
“She wrote about their finan¬
cial needs and how to meet
those,” said Giddish. “I’m espe¬
cially grateful to Ms. LaManque
for taking the time to write and
submit the application.”
The $1,000 gift card will be
used to help economically chal¬
lenged students — possibly
including, but not limited to,
hurricane evacuees — with the
purchase of school supplies, said
Giddish.
(( (The card) will be used to
help as many students as possi¬
ble,” she said. “We oftentimes
have families who are in finan¬
cial crisis and need assistance
with school supplies.
a Usually, the first person
who is contacted about these
needs is the counselor. The
counselors will have access to
the (gift card) to address these
types of needs.”
Giddish said she was not sur¬
prised North’s counselors chose
to use the funds to help students
in need. “We have a very giving
staff and student body here at
NFHS,” she said. “They have
participated in countless fund
raising activities to help the hur¬
ricane victims.
“I also appreciate Best Buy
for providing the opportunity
and connecting with the com¬
munity.”
Best Buy’s te@ch
Emergency Response program
is a part of the retailer’s te@ch
program, which strives to
“reward schools that are using
interactive technology to make
learning fun for kids.”
In the past two years, more
than 2,000 schools have been
awarded nearly $6 million to
help them expand or enhance
existing programs that use tech¬
nology.
A second round of te@ch
Emergency Response awards
will be awarded in February.
you in 2006.
During the holiday break,
fewer gatekeepers are on duty,
and some hard-to-reacH peo¬
ple might be in the office and
more willing to take time to
talk.
If you can’t sell in
December,” he said, “then
think of December as the
beginning of 2006. Ask your¬
self, 'What can I do now to
position myself to really hit
the street running in
January? Ml