Business, civic group, school and family teams encouraged to sign up

MERCER COUNTY, N.J. — The Mercer County Sports and Entertainment Commission is pleased to announce the Mercer Madness Dodgeball Festival is returning for its third year on Saturday, April 17 inside the skating rink at Mercer County Park! The popular event will once again be sanctioned by the National Dodgeball League and teams are encouraged to sign up now.  The event is open to anyone who wishes to form a team for one of three divisions: Open, Adult Co-ed and High School. Prizes will be awarded to the winner in each division.

“This unique event promises to be one of the most popular draws of the year,” said County Executive Brian Hughes. “I encourage everyone to get together with some friends and family, form a team and have some fun.”

Professional dodgeball player Brett Batky of the New York Epic will be on hand as tournament director.  Batky competed at the college level at The University of Mary Washington and The College of William and Mary, both renowned for producing high quality dodgeball players. As a competitor, he continues to refine a cadre of trick throws such as the “Double Dragon” and the “Look-Away.”

“I’m excited” said Batky, “and looking forward to joining the Mercer Madness dodgeball experience.”

Patrick Ryan, Chairman of the Hopewell Valley Community Bank, a primary sponsor of the dodgeball event, said “This is a marvelous opportunity for local businesses to get their employees out of the stores, offices or shops to enjoy some exercise and have some fun.”

For more information about Mercer Madness dodgeball, visit
http://www.thendl.com/affiliates/mercer-madness/ or call 952-931-0404.

The entry fee is $120 and teams can have 6 to 10 players. More information about the tournament can be found by visiting www.thendl.com or calling 609-737-0927.
Visit Mercer County on the Web at www.mercercounty.org

Your updates appear on an unlimited number of Fan walls. This works for our Fans who do not want to receive an email alert after each ABS Wall Update.

We also have the option to invite personal FB and other contacts via email to scheduled events.

But it’s not always easy to migrate from one platform to the other with content and followers intact so it’s a good idea to evaluate both before creating a Page or Group. Here are a couple articles weighing in on the pros & cons of each tool:

Facebook Pages vs Facebook Groups: What’s the Difference? by Howard Greenstein

Facebook groups vs. Facebook pages by Tim Davies

You can create a basic FB Page in about 5 minutes by starting here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php

If you forget the link above, go to any Page (ABS Fan page for example  ) and on the bottom left side of the screen, click Create a Page for My Business.

1. Select a Category for your organization.
2. Select a sub-category from the drop down menu.
3. Name the page – I usually use the full name/acronym so people can find us either way, i.e., Association Business Solutions (ABS).
4. Create the page and fill in details, including logo in place of the ? mark & description.

Tips for Managing Content:

• more than one person can be designated as an Admin to help with updates;
• people love photos & videos;
• when you add a link to a newspaper article or to your website, a logo or graphic item usually automatically appears, making the wall posting more visually interesting;
• when you post something on your blog, add a link to that page on Facebook so you’re driving people to your website;
• schedule quality marketing time for this so the postings / interaction stays fresh and it also doesn’t become a big distraction!

Once you have a few things on your wall, here are three easy (& free) ways to promote the page:

1. Click “Suggest to Friends” on the left side of the page. All  your personal FB contacts will appear and you can easily select who may have an interest in your business postings to receive an invitation to become Fans.
2. Have staff add to their email signatures and/or business cards.
3. Post a Facebook icon and invitation to become a Fan on your website.

Here are a few excellent articles about using Facebook pages:

8 Essential Apps for Your Brand’s Facebook Page by Alison Driscoll

Social Media Marketing – Using Twitter & Facebook to Grow Your Business and Maintain Relationships by David Bayer

5 Elements of a Successful Facebook Fan Page by Samir Balwani

***
Karla Tillman Pollack is co-Founder and Principal of Association Business Solutions, Inc.  (ABS), an association management company headquartered in Trenton, NJ.  ABS provides association management, writing, marketing, nonprofit financials, social media communications, government affairs and PAC management services on a full-service or project basis.

Association Business Solutions, Inc. | 247 East Front Street | Trenton, NJ
T/609-392-3800 | www.absnj.com
Follow Us on http://twitter.com/ABSNJ
Become a fan on Facebook
ABS on LinkedIn

Google Alerts

We create Google Alerts for all our clients and their main contacts, ABS staff and subjects that are important to our company and customers.

It’s an excellent tool to keep up with client milestones and news. For example, something that seems inconsequential to a client, might fit perfectly in that last section of the newsletter we may be writing for them.

I also like Google Alerts to monitor the latest trends in the industries in which we work. We’ve found business leads and sources to submit industry related articles… all delivered to our email box!

Need other ideas for using Google Alerts?  Check out Donna Gunter’s article entitled How to Use Google Alerts to Boost Your Business.

I joined Steve Harrison’s Reporter Connection email list. He recently sent the following excellent article:

“How To Use Google Alerts To Get More Publicity”

Google has a very helpful free ‘alerts’ service which can help you get more publicity.

It’s essentially an online clipping service which monitors both the web and Google News database, then sends you an email as soon as something you’re interested in appears in their search results.

For instance, let’s say you’re a big fan of actor Kiefer Sutherland. You can set up a Google Alert for his name. Then whenever Google finds him mentioned in a top news story or on the web, you’ll get an email including the web site address so you can go see where and how Kiefer is mentioned.

To set up your own Google Alerts for free, just go to http://www.google.com/alerts (see tips further down for using the service and its paid alternative).

The exciting thing is you can use this service to grow your business in all sorts of ways.

Some of the obvious ways to use it include setting up alerts to see what others are saying about you online, ’spy’ on competitors, find out about new developments in your field of expertise and/or discover some other influential’s with whom you might want to align yourself
in some way.

This service is also one of the best publicity tools ever created and it’s FREE! Here are three ways to use Google Alerts to get media exposure:

Strategy #1 — Get publicity immediately by tying-in with breaking news stories.

One of the easiest ways to get publicity is to be able to comment on what’s already in the news. For instance, one of my Quantum Leap members, Harrison Forbes, is a dog training expert and author of DOG TALK.

While helping him craft his publicity strategy, we advised him, ‘Whenever a kid gets attacked by a dog somewhere in America, you need to contact newspapers and radio/TV shows in that city immediately and let them know you can comment on why it might have happened and how this attack could have been prevented.’

Harrison then asked, ‘But how will I know when a dog attack story hits the news?’

My answer: “Google Alerts.”

Within 90 days of beginning to use this strategy, Harrison told me he’d gotten publicity in over 40 different media outlets across the country using this method.

Strategy #2 — Get publicity year-round by building friendships with journalists who write about your topic.

Another of my clients, Mark Amtower, also uses Google Alerts service in a very systematic way to get publicity.

Here’s what Mark does: First he set up alerts to track stories written on his area of expertise, which is how small businesses can sell more to the government.

When he gets an alert email pointing him to a good story on that subject, he then sends the journalist who wrote the story a short email saying he enjoyed their article and offers a sincere compliment.

His email stands out because journalists don’t often hear from their readers and when they do it’s usually to complain.

Within his email Mark mentions his website GovernmentMarketingBestPractices.com to reinforce his credibility.

If the journalist writes him back and thanks him for his comments, Mark then offers to send them a free copy of his book and mentions he’s happy to be a resource for them on any future stories they might do on this or similar topics.

This simple technique has helped Mark get a lot of publicity in his niche because he’s systematically created relationships with many reporters who now look at him as a reliable source.

Strategy #3 — Get publicity easily by using proven headline formulas as “hooks.”

Authors who want more publicity often ask me what their ‘hook’ or angle should be when approaching the media. I’ll immediately ask them, ‘What hooks have others in your industry successfully used to get publicity?’

Usually they don’t know, but by using Google Alerts (or even just searching the Google News database at http://www.google.com/news) you can quickly find articles in which others with similar expertise are quoted.

For example, let’s say you’ve written a book about how to get the best mortgage. Suppose also that you’re based in Phoenix. One day you discover a story in the Chicago Tribune about new loan programs making it easier for self-employed people to get a mortgage.

Well, if it’s newsworthy in Chicago, it’s probably going to be considered newsworthy by the media in your city. So pitch your local media on doing the same story, only this time they’ll be interviewing YOU as the expert.

More Tips for Using Google Alerts

Here are a few words of advice on implementing this strategy:

* Consider the paid alternative. First, Google’s own alert service (http://www.google.com/alerts) is free but there’s a paid alternative called GigaAlert.com
which isn’t affiliated with the search engine giant and costs $4.95 to $39.95/month.

My client Susan Joyce tells me this paid service is worth the money because Google’s free version presently only flags items mentioned in the top 10-50 results of a particular search, while GigaAlert.com goes up to 750 results per search.

* Beware of overly-broad searches. Whichever tool you use, be as specific as possible with the search criteria you select; otherwise, you’ll get a lot of junk. Sometimes it’s unavoidable if your search terms are very common or overly-broad.

For instance, I have an alert set up for ‘Steve Harrison’ and because I’m not the only person in the world with that name, I get a lot of off-target alerts. For this reason, you might want to have the alert emails first go to an assistant who screens them and passes along appropriate alerts. So get plugged in to this great service and start getting more publicity!

All the Best,

Steve Harrison
Bradley Communications Corp.
390 Reed Road, First Floor
PO Box 360
Broomall PA 19008
484-477-4235 (Cust Svc Voice Mail)
http://www.rtirmag.net/?10000
http://www.ReporterConnection.com/JoinNow/?10000
http://www.NationalPublicitySummit.com/?10000

***
Karla Tillman Pollack is co-Founder and Principal of Association Business Solutions, Inc.  (ABS), an association management company headquartered in Trenton, NJ.  ABS provides association management, writing, marketing, nonprofit financials, social media communications, government affairs and PAC management services on a full-service or project basis.

Association Business Solutions, Inc. | 247 East Front Street | Trenton, NJ
T/609-392-3800 | www.absnj.com
Follow Us on http://twitter.com/ABSNJ
Become a fan on Facebook
ABS on LinkedIn

For Immediate Release
Contact: Mary Gay Abbott-Young, CEO, (609) 695-1436, ext. 101, mgay@rmtrenton.org

Trenton, New Jersey – The 6^TH Annual Adam Shanks Mission Miniature Masters Tournament will take place on February 26th (snow date March 5^th) at the Rescue Mission of Trenton.

The miniature golf tournament takes place indoors within the Rescue Mission facility.  Two 9- hole golf courses are designed and constructed by the Mission’s residents and run throughout the halls of the Mission’s various buildings. “It’s absolutely amazing what you make from an old pallet, wooden crate, a bed sheet, some aluminum studs, elevator rope, 4 hose clamps, 2 curtain rods, 4 barrel lids, 1 door knob, 2 shelf brackets, 4 spray can lids and miscellaneous plumbing washers if you are creative,” said Mary Gay Abbott-Young, the Mission’s CEO.

The event starts at 11:30 am.  A complete barbecue lunch is served in the main dining room beginning at 12:45 pm. At 1:30 pm, silent auction winners are announced and awards presented to Mercer County’s best putters.

The cost per golfer is only $50 or $175 for a foursome including lunch.  Hole Sponsorships are available at $125 per hole.  This year’s event is being co-sponsored by the Shanks Family, The Penguin Group, Hutchinson Industries, and Wilmington Trust. The Borden Perlman Agency is once again hosting the fantastic “summer time” barbecue lunch.

Proceeds from the event support the Rescue Mission’s work to remove barriers that prevent individuals from being self-sufficient and leading healthy lives.  “We are facing severe loss of revenue from government sources, which makes this fundraiser even more critical,” notes Bonnie Baker, President of the Rescue Mission’s Board of Directors.  “At the same we know others are tightening their belts, so we did not raise prices for this year’s tournament,” she added.

For further information on participating in 6^TH Annual Adam Shanks Mission Miniature Masters Tournament, call Irwin Stoolmacher at (609)-393-0855.  Spaces are limited so call early. http://www.rescuemissionoftrenton.org/2010GolfRegistrationForm.pdf

About the Rescue Mission of Trenton

The Rescue Mission of Trenton, New Jersey, is the agency in the City of Trenton that serves the truly needy men and women who have no place to turn for shelter, food, and clothing. The Mission provides a safe, clean, warm refuge for the homeless, the hungry, the transient, and the addicted. The Mission provides services and counseling to encourage individuals to reach their greatest potential. The Mission creates an environment where one can live with dignity, build self-esteem, experience love, responsibility, and hope.

For more information, please visit: www.RescueMissionofTrenton.org.

The Rescue Mission of Trenton is located at 98 Carroll Street (at the corner of Perry Street, just off Route 1), Trenton, NJ 08605

###

Photo caption: Mary Gay Abbott-Young, Rescue Mission CEO beside a covered wagon built completely from re-cycled items by Mission residents for the “Old West” hole.

RSVP for any event by contacting John Cadle at  (609)393-4882 or tc@trentonclub.org.

Thursday, April 29 - Semi-Annual Dinner Meeting, 5:00pm

Friday, April 9 - Italian Night paired with fine Italian wines – Details to follow.

Wednesday, April 7 – Mercer Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Why Not Wednesday networking event! 5:00 – 7:00pm

Wednesday, March 17 – St. Patrick’s Day feast! Lunch will feature seasonal Irish fare and then the O’ Trenton Club will host its annual St. Patrick’s dinner at 5:30pm. Menu includes corned beef & cabbage and shamrock cocktails.

Friday, February 12 – Valentine’s Dinner @ 5:30 pm
Romance is in the air at the Trenton Club Friday EVENING (instead of lunch) February 12!  So bring your favorite date and join us for a special Valentine’s Dinner.
Starter Course – choice of: Lobster Bisque or Mixed Salad

Main Course – Choice of:
Prime Rib ($20.95)
Pork Bruscceta ($18.95)
Tilapia Francese ($18.95)

Tiramisu, Coffee/Tea

Join One Simple Wish as we celebrate the launch of Lissie’s Art Spark, created in partnership with ArtWorks and Boys & Girls Club, which will offer free art classes to Trenton kids ages 9-11. Wine, food and live music. Tickets can be purchased online at www.onesimplewish.org/events
Event Press Release

Please help us spread the word if you can.  Hope you can all join us!

Danielle Gletow
Founder & Executive Director
One Simple Wish
www.onesimplewish.org
danielle@onesimplewish.org
609.883.8484

Where: The Rescue Mission of Trenton
98 Carroll Street, Trenton, NJ 08605-0790 (at the corner of Perry Street, just off Route 1)
Directions
RMTrenton.org

Friday, February 26th
11:30 am – Golf on one of two 9- hole golf courses designed and constructed by the Mission’s residents and run throughout the halls of the Mission’s various buildings.
12:45 pm – A complete barbecue lunch in the main dining room and silent auction bidding
1:30 pm -  Silent auction winners announced and awards presented to Mercer County’s best putters

Cost: $50/golfer or $175 for a foursome including lunch.  Hole Sponsorships are available at $125 per hole.

This year’s event is being co-sponsored by the Shanks Family, The Penguin Group, Hutchinson Industries, and Wilmington Trust. The Borden Perlman Agency is once again hosting the fantastic “summer time” barbecue lunch. Call Irwin Stoolmacher at (609)-393-0855 for tickets.
http://www.rescuemissionoftrenton.org/2010GolfRegistrationForm.pdf

This indoor outing features:

• Round of golf on either the south course or our new north course
• a great barbecue lunch, including Falafel
• a golf-enhanced silent auction
• fun awards ceremony!

This fundraising event helps the Rescue Mission to continue Working Together to Rebuild Lives.

Press Release

At Associated Business Solutions (ABS), we work hard to improve the quality of your business. By shopping through our shopping portal, you’ll not only be able to take advantage of all the cost saving features of our site… savings like coupon codes, free delivery promotions, free sales tax (where applicable), shopping webinars, & product testimonials… just to name a few… you’ll also be able to help us grow so we may continue to provide more of the quality expertise you’ve come to expect from us here at ABS.

Simply by purchasing the same products you were planning on buying anyway, from your favorite retailers,  at the same price or normally less…  a portion of your purchase price will be donated to help us improve upon the programs you’ve come to rely on.  Each retailer will show exactly what percent of each purchase made will be donated so you know exactly what your contribution will be.

Click on our ShoptoEarn link to explore the retailers and savings.  On the right side of the page, click on ShoptoEarth to explore the green companies participating in the program. No login or special codes required!

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about how we can make a positive difference in the world together.

ShopToEarn.net/The Giving Back Group

More Information:  KMarks@alliesnj.org

BRIAN M. HUGHES
COUNTY EXECUTIVE

CONTACT:  Julie Willmot  (609) 278-7137
DATE:  Dec. 1, 2009

MERCER COUNTY OUTLINES HOLIDAY SHOPPING TIPS FOR CONSUMERS

TRENTON, N.J.—Mercer County and New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs today reminded shoppers to know their rights about gift cards and item refunds and to check the national list of recalled toys before going online or to stores this holiday season.

“Part of being a smart shopper is knowing your rights as a consumer, and the tips below can help ensure that you get what you paid for and make your holiday shopping experience more rewarding,” said Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes.

Gift Cards:

• No gift card or gift certificate can expire for 24 months after purchase;
• No dormancy fee can be imposed within the first 24 months following purchase or within the 24 month period following last use of the gift card;
• After 24 months of non-activity, the issuer may charge a maximum dormancy fee of $2 per month; and
• The gift card must include a telephone number to call for information about its expiration date or dormancy fees.

Refunds:

• Retailers must conspicuously post their refund policy for all merchandise in one of the following locations:
• Attached to the item itself;
• Affixed to each cash register or at point of sale;
• Situated as to be clearly visible to the buyer from the cash register; or
• Posted at each store entrance used by the public.

Store Lay-A-Way:

• Know the terms of the store’s lay-a-way plan. Do not assume lay-a-way is free.

Rainchecks:

Retailers must offer a raincheck to all customers when advertised merchandise is not available for purchase, unless the merchandise is advertised as being available in a specific quantity (i.e. “10 per store”) or in “limited supply.” When a raincheck is issued:

• The retailer has 60 days to honor the raincheck, unless the consumer holding the raincheck agrees to an extension;
• If the item costs more than $15, the retailer must give written or telephonic notice to the consumer when the item becomes available; and
• After such notice is given, the item must be held for the consumer for at least 10 days or the end of the 60-day raincheck period (whichever is greater).

Online Purchases:

• Be certain the web site is secure or uses encryption before entering personal and credit card information; look for “https” in the web site address;
• Print out a transaction record for each purchase and keep it to resolve any issues regarding the item being purchased; and
• Do not click on links contained in unsolicited emails from supposed shopping web sites;

Toy Safety:

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has authority to issue recalls for unsafe or dangerous toys. Consumers can check the list of recalled toys via the Division’s web site at http://www.state.nj.us/lps/ca/recall/recalls.htm .

Charitable Giving:

All charities doing business in New Jersey must be registered, unless the charity raises less than $10,000 annually and does not use paid fund raisers to solicit donations.

To verify whether a charity is registered, check the online registry maintained by the Division at http://www.njconsumeraffairs.gov/charity/chardir.htm .

Know the warning signs of a scam. If you receive a telephone call from a charity asking for a donation:

• Avoid being pressured into making an immediate donation;
• Beware if you are offered a prize or gift in return for your donation;
• Do not give credit card information to an unknown person over telephone; and
• Never agree to have a messenger or delivery person come to your home to pick up your donation.

When receiving a solicitation for a donation by mail, remember:

• Trinkets and other items accompanying the donation request are gifts. You are not required to send a donation because you received a trinket or item;
• Be dubious if the charity claims you made a past donation or pledge but have no record of it; and
• Ignore harassing letters that demand payment of a donation pledge that you have no record or recollection of making.

Consumers may file complaints with the Mercer County Office of Consumer Affairs at (609) 989-6671 or at www.njconsumeraffairs.gov/ocp/ocpform.htm or by calling 1-800-242-5846 (toll free within N.J.) or 973-504-6200.

Visit Mercer County on the web at www.mercercounty.org