Its December 1st, your boss has given you the task of organizing the food for the office party; here are some helpful links on the subject of food safety during the holidays.

The United States Department of Agriculture has several food safety fact sheets available on the Internet. Topics include cooking for groups, turkey basics, and safe handling of take out foods.

The Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services list of Holiday Food Safety Tips has helpful guidelines on avoiding those holiday foodborne illnesses.

Business Tip of the Month Archive

What’s new at your library on the subject of small business…?

New to the electronic database collection is the Small Business Resource Center. Gale’s Small Business Resource Center is a one-stop source for info on starting and/or growing your business.

Highlights include

• Business Plans Handbook Series, with over 300 actual business plans. .
  
• A “How To…” section including topics on,
  Writing a business plan
  Financing your business
  Marketing and growing your business
  Buying and selling a business
  
• Access to 200 business journals
  

Using Small Business Resource Center is easy; for example, you have an idea to open a music store. From the site’s opening page, you can select Business Type, find music stores, click on that subject and see business plans, and full text articles about opening a music business.

Small Business Resource Center is located on the library’s Online Databases page under the Gale Group collection.

Business Tip of the Month Archive

What does your East Baton Rouge Parish library card, a personal computer and a fast Internet connection have in common? By using all three, you can access eMedia from Overdrive. a new service offered by the library with access to downloadable audio books, ebooks and videos.

Are there business books in Overdrive? Yes, Overdrive currently lists 25 business titles such as:

• The 100 Greatest Leadership Principles of All Time
  by Leslie Pockell and Adrienne Avila
  Format – Mobipocket eBook
• 101 Best Cover Letters
  by Jay A. Block Michael Betrus
  Format – Adobe eBook
• How to Grow a Backbone: 10 Strategies for Gaining Power and Influence at Work
  by Susan Marshall and Anna Fields
  Format – OverDrive Audio Book

Good! How do I access Overdrive?

• Go to the library’s eMedia page
• Take a few minutes to read the Quick Start Guide. The guide has information on the type of materials available, check out procedures, and how to place items on hold.
• Downloads are required to use Overdrive; the Quick Start Guide has instructions and links for downloading.

Put your computer into high gear and enjoy Overdrive.

Business Tip of the Month Archive

September is National Sickle Cell Awareness Month. The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 protects employees with sickle cell disease. from job discrimination. The website of the Sickle Cell Information Center has useful information for employers and employees regarding this disease.

If I am an employer, what can I learn at this website?

• Are people with Sickle Cell disabled?
• Who is protected?
• What accommodations am I responsible for as an employer?

If I am a worker, what can I learn from this website?

• What do I do when discrimination occurs?
• Is there someone I can contact?

The Sickle Cell Information Center has a four page discussion on the impact of the Americans With Disabilities Act on employers and employees. The last page of information has a list of organizational and government contacts.

Business Tip of the Month Archive

You have a small business and you would like to market your product on the Internet. Online stores are the way to go, and easy to set up. Yahoo and eBay offer e-commerce services. At Yahoo Merchant Solutions you can…

• Choose a plan and pricing level that fits your business model.
• Design your store using a templates or a wizard.
• List up to 50,000 products for sale.
• Offer payment with credit card or PayPal and automatically calculate shipping, fees, and taxes.
• Use up to 20 GB for your store, and get your own domain name.

-Source
Komando, Kim “Make Money Online With Your Own Online Store” 7 July 2007. The Kim Komando Radio Show. www.komando.com.

Set up your store, make money!

Business Tip of the Month Archive

• Do I have enough coverage for my small business?
• How do I insure my home-based business?
• Does my home owner’s policy cover business losses?
• Can I get disaster coverage?

Good questions; where can you find answers? The Insurance Information Institute’s website, www.iii.org has answers to these questions and more. Check out the Business page and find a list of informative topics. Use the find a company feature to locate companies in a particular state and by type of insurance coverage.

A Spanish version of the site is available.

Business Tip of the Month Archive

Looking for small business workshops to attend in the Baton Rouge area? The Louisiana Small Business Development Center may have just the one for you. Here is a list of workshops being offered in Baton Rouge.

Business Boot Camp for Startups-The Basics
Saturday, June 2, 2007
8:00 AM to 2:30 PM
1109 CEBA Building
1200 Nicholson Dr. Ext.
Baton Rouge, LA 70803

“Basics of starting a small businesses, exploring entrepreneurship, researching and analyzing the market, setting financial goals, building the organization and team, local resources and assistance for entrepreneurs, and war stories from entrepreneurs who starting businesses and survived the process to tell about it.”

Patent & Trademark Workshop
Saturday, June 9, 2007
10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Louisiana State University
Middleton Library
Dalrymple Dr. and Tower Dr.
Baton Rouge, LA 70803

“Basic information on patent and trademarks, Search techniques, General interest information useful to inventors and researchers, and Patent Attorney will be on hand to answer questions concerning patents and trademarks.”

Additional workshops will be held in New Orleans, Hammond, Lafayette, Lake Charles and Monroe. Click here to view the complete schedule, details, and registration info.

Business Tip of the Month Archive

April 15 – 21 is National Library Week, time to roundup and list the latest small business titles in our collection.

• 100 Great Businesses And The Minds Behind Them

  Emily Ross & Angus Holland, c2006.

• Guerrilla Marketing Research: Marketing Research Techniques That Can Help Any Business Make More Money

  Robert J Kaden, c2006.

• Entrepreneur’s Information Sourcebook: Charting The Path To Small Business Success

  Susan C. Awe, c2006.

• Hip-hop, Inc.: Success Strategies Of The Rap Mogules

  Richard Oliver & Tim Leffel, c2006.

• Legal Guide For Starting & Running A Small Business

  Fred S. Steingold, c2006.

• Small Is The New Big: And 183 Other Riffs, Rants, And Remarkable Business Ideas

  Seth Godin, c2006.

• True To Yourself: Leading A Values-Based Business

  Mark Albion, c2006.

Titles listed above are linked to the Library’s online catalog so you can see title locations and status. Once you’re in the catalog, click on the picture of the book cover for a synopsis and other information.

Business Tip of the Month Archive

March 1 – 31 is Workplace Eye Health and Safety Awareness Month, a good time to check the workplace for hazards and obstacles that could cause eye injury.

Need help finding literature on workplace safety?

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration has many posters and brochures on safety in the workplace. You can contact the Baton Rouge area office at,

9100 Bluebonnet Centre Blvd, Suite 201
Baton Rouge, LA 70809
Phone 225 298-5458

Need more info?

The Wise Owl program is “a safety education program designed to promote the widespread use of approved protective eyewear that meets ANSI Z87 industrial or ASTM sports standards.” Wise Owl is a fee based membership service of Prevent Blindness America.

Wise Owl on the Internet

Links
Workplace Eye Safety

First Aid For Eye Emergencies

Business Tip of the Month Archive

Is there one website that has information you need to start a business in Louisiana? Yes! The Official Guide To Doing Business In Louisiana has it all, and more. The guide is available on the Internet at www.businessguidela.com

Useful features are;

• Louisiana Overview – a snapshot of Louisiana’s economy and employment picture.
• Help At A Glace – a one page list of contacts for everything from filing articles of incorporation to requesting wetlands determination.
• Maps – showing major highways, airports, seaports, and areas of broadband Internet access.
• Go Zone Information – Links to Gulf Opportunity Zone, (GO Zone) info including a GO Zone guide, and map of Louisiana GO Zone areas.
• Links – a list of state agency and parish government websites.

Business Tip of the Month Archive