Member Presentations - PayChex

Do you enjoy all the paperwork and tax filings that are associated with having even one employee? Sarah Jamar from PayChex visually demonstrated the amount of paperwork that having just one employee adds to our already busy schedules.

Paychex started as a one man business with three clients and has grown to a national business with over 500,000 clients! They've also been described as "one of the world's most ethical companies" Ethisphere magazine, "one off the top training organizations" Training magazine, and best of all "one of America's most admired companies" Fortune magazine.

Sounds like letting Paychex handle your Payroll and Human Resources responsibilities. Here are some of the tasks that PayChex can handle for you:

Taxpay - Federal, state and most local payroll tax computation & filing, processing and deposits, preparation of electronic filing in most states, tax summary reports, state & federal notifications and quarterly unemployment notices.

State Unemployment insurance management
Employee Pay Options
New Hire reporting
Tax Credit Service
Retirement plan administration: Design, chose from thousands of funds, flexible approaches, and plan & participation level guidance.

Health Insurance & Administration: Selection, integration with payroll, enrollment review, and payment. They also offer Section 125 Plans that help you and your employees stretch their salaries and reduce your payroll taxes at the same time.

There is a solution for every sized business from the owner/employee to large corporations. Give Sarah Jamar a call for details on how you can save yourself time and headaches by outsourcing your payroll and HR duties to Paychex.

Member Presentations -Creative Memories

Alice Hinds a Creative Memories consultant showed us the fantastic software available through Creative Memories. Cataloging software that is easy to use makes short work of finding your favorite digital photographs. Cataloging is important and frequently the benefits are life saving. Alice told the story of a young boy who neglected to tell his mother of the poster he needed to make for school until the last minute, literally. Because his mom had cataloged all their family photographs she was able to find the photos, design the poster and get it printed in less than an hour.

Once your images are cataloged Alice then demonstrated the ease of creating a digital scrapbook. One member mentioned that she attended a Scrap Diva event and in the three hours she was able to complete an entire vacation album while the other ladies who were creating the traditional scrapbooks were lucky to have more than 2-3 pages completed. Digital albums cost less in the long run, can easily be printed multiple times for family members and are guaranteed to last a lifetime or longer.

The software for creating the digital albums is free, but you will likely want to upgrade once you've created a couple of books. The upgraded software is a measly $39.95 and allows you to make changes seen only in high end photo editing software. You can use this software to create cards, invitations, posters, artwork for you walls. You can even purchase the Everyday Memories Frame or a Page Frame to show off your favorite memories.

Of course, Creative Memories continues to create and sell some of the highest quality scrapbooking materials for those of you who wish to create a true labor of love. All of the CM products go through a rigorous testing to assure that they will preserve your memories for decades to come.

If you need help getting started on organizing your photos be they on the computer, in the photo printer bags or both, give Alice Hinds a call. She'll show you how fun and easy it is to complete. You won't be sorry you took the time either. You never know when one of your kids is going to need something for a school project!

Alice Hinds - 925.240.0992

DNP Membership Drive!

It's that time of year. Time to add to our networking partners and help more local businesses grown through referrals. We are looking for businesses in the following categories:

Seamstress/Taylor
Maintenance/Handyman
Jewelry Designer/Retailer
Housecleaning service
Custom Framer
Attorney
Interior Decorator
Chiropractor (to fill temporary vacancy)
Mortgage broker
Florist
Window Washing Co.
Pet Sitting Service
Tax Preparer
Private Tutoring Service
Vet
Dentist/Orthodontist
Hair Stylist
Holistic Health Care
Optomitrist
Pastry Chef/Cake Decorator
Personal Trainer
Pool Service
Promotional Products
and more!

If you know anyone that fits into these categories, are a business in one of these categories, call Dave Mengel at 457-5796 for a personal invite to our next meeting!

Valentine's Dinner & A Movie!

Sponsored by Super Suppers & Ruggerios' Italian Style catering - you and your sweetheart can enjoy a wonderful dinner and movie night at the Shops At Fairview. Each table is a table for two and the menu makes me hungry just looking at it.

There are three nights available: Friday 2/13 (Super Suppers $95 per couple), Saturday 2/14 (Super Suppers, $115 per couple) and Sunday 2/15 (Ruggerio's $85 per couple). Wine is included on all three dates.

The Super Suppers menu is as follows:

Artichoke Bruschetta
Classic Caesar Salad
Parmesan Chicken or Filet Mignon
Molten Fudge Cakes for dessert

The Ruggerio's Italian Style Catering menu:

Roasted Bell Pepper Antipasta
Greek Salad
Chicken Piccata or Homemade Italian Meatballs
Chocolate Decadence

For reservations please call 925.978.3221

Guerrila Marketing Tips For You!

Guerrilla Marketing is a great book, actually, there are many of them. But many of you don't have time for reading and I have found a solution for you. There is an interesting blog, where you can get all kinds of unique marketing tips. Here are a few that I liked"

1 - PAY IT FORWARD. Simple enough, but with a twist. When you're heading to a movie, pay for the person behind you and tell the cashier to give them your business card. You're not guaranteed that they will become a client but you'll definitely create some word of mouth!

2 - BUSINESS CARDS - STOP! Don't skip this one. Most of you pass out business cards and hope they'll call. Why not go to the library and bookstores, head over to the section that relates to your business and put a card in each book? This is great targeted marketing and only costs you a few dollars for the cards and an afternoon of your time.

3- BUILD A BETTER BUSINESS CARD! - Instead of your run-of-the-mill, everyday business card, why not make up cards with a list of the Top Ten Reasons to Hire You listed on them. Make them 100% true, humourous and memorable.

4 - HOLIDAY GREETINGS! Think you have to wait till the fourth quarter for this? Heck no, why not send your past clients a Valentine thanking them for the past business and asking for some future business. We all have clients we love, might as well show them!

Taco Del Mar - Member Presentation

Fast, fresh and fun. Taco Del Mar will feed your inner Baja. Whether it's a mondo burrito, rippin' fish tacos, nachos, enchiladasor any other made-to-order item, Taco Del Mar guarantees the quality, freshness and taste of every item they serve. All meals are prepared while you watch and you have your choice of ingredients. None of their food is fried, there is no lard in the beans, so in addition to super tasty Taco Del Mar is also a healthier option when you are craving spicy Mexican food.

To help get your year started right, Taco Del Mar is offering low calorie options for the New Year. In the northwest, we’re offering the “320”: a 320 calorie burrito full of braised chicken, pinto beans, seasoned rice and freshly made pico de gallo. This delicious burrito will leave you satisfied. Or try a Baja Bowls – delicious burritos without the tortilla. These tasty treats are full of flavor and quality ingredients without the calories of traditional Mexican cuisine. A delicious chicken Baja Bowl has only 500 calories!

Do you need catering? Taco Del Mar is there to help you! You can pick up your order, have it delivered or even hire the staff to set up and serve. You can have a Nacho Bar, an Enchilada Bar or a Taco Salad Bar. There are also a couple of options for "group grazing" such as a Bullet Burrito Platter, Rice & Beans, Layered Dip, Chips & Salsa or Enchiladas. Box lunches and Deluxe Box lunches are also available if your group is going on the road.

Stop in the next time you crave Mexican food, Taco Del Mar will not disappoint.

3101 Balfour Rd. "The Shops at Fairview". 240-6330

Commercial Real Estate - Now may be the time to jump in!

Are you outgrowing your home office? Kids and dogs making it difficult to speak professionally on the phone? Have you been considering getting an office or retail location but are afraid of getting into a lease?

Well, 2009 may be the year to take the plunge according to our January 13th speaker, Carol Gwin. Carol is a commercial real estate broker and she spoke on the ins and outs of renting commercial property.

If you feel it's time to get your business out of your home you should know that there are hundreds of thousands of feet of available office or retail space. Rents are really low and leases are much more negotiable than they were in the past. Two years ago if you wanted a retail or commercial location the landlord was in the drivers seat and you had few if any negotiating powers. Now is a terrific time for a business to negotiate a more favorable lease.

According to Carol, in commercial real estate, EVERYTHING is negotiable, but make sure you get everything in writing. For more information on commercial property available in East County, call Carol Gwin at 925.625.5788.

Agape Village Christmas Donation

Delta Networking has a "50/50 Share The Pot" at every meeting where 50% of the proceeds go to a charity of our choosing. Our fourth quarter charity was the Agape Villages Foster Care program. Our members raised money for toys and gift cards for the 28 children currently in their system. That's wonderful when you realize that we don't have 28 members! Giving back is important to our members because a strong community is good for all of us.