Its summertime, summertime, sum, sum, summertime ... otherwise known as "vacation time." Yes, I'm on vacation until August 14th. I am in Atlantic City, NJ and I have already taken money out of Mr. Trump's bank account. OK, it was only $4.40, but it was something!
For those of you, who want to see me in my new Speedo swimsuit, feel free to click here for a photo.
I wanted to thank everyone for the work this year. I'm sorry if some projects have taken a bit longer than expected. I haven't written a newsletter in over a year because I've been swamped with work since March 2006. It's been non-stop html here, php there, databases over there. I do appreciate all the referrals. 95% of my work in 2007 was work referred to me from you!
As I sit here on the beach getting all lobster-red, here's the latest from Schell's Web Design.
PRICE INCREASE
Everyone hates to tell their customers about price increases. I've been putting my price increase off for 6 years, but it's finally time to increase. Hourly maintenance rates will be going up from $35/hour to $40/hour starting January 1, 2008. I'm giving you a big notice so it's not a surprise in January. I would have raised it higher and sooner, but since I won $4.40 in the Trump Casino, I can delay the increase until January 2008.
MINOR CHANGES COMING
Many of you have heard me say: "I'll be in your area on...." - for some of you, it may be something new you'll hear me say. For the rest of 2007 and into 2008, I'll be grouping appointments by geographic location. I'll also be encouraging you to submit more changes electronically or through the mail. Why? Well, there are a few reasons.
- Gas is way too expensive. I am trying to keep my costs down, which keep your costs down.
- The more time I am in my office, the more I can get done in a shorter amount of time.
- Around 50% of my work is outside PA, and all-electronic works well. It makes things go faster, and can also make the process smoother.
Don't be too alarmed! I will still have lots of meetings. I still prefer to meet people face-to-face. However, in many cases, instead of waiting for me to come out, you can send changes/ideas/thoughts to me electronically or in the mail.
DAVE'S TRAVEL TIPS
Since I'm still on vacation relaxing on the beach with my toes in the sand, sunglasses on, beach umbrella over me (yes, I'm rubbing it in now), I wanted to share some of my tips about where I am. I call these DAVE'S TRAVEL TIPS. Here are a few beach/vacation related things that popped into my mind.
It's a state law in NJ that you CANNOT pump your own gas. I've been in NJ many times, and I never remembered when I stopped for gas, that I could not pump my own. When I pulled up to get gas this week, I was shocked to see a guy come out and ask me for my credit card. I couldn't even put my credit card in the pump myself. Strange to me, but probably not to people who live in NJ.
Atlantic City isn't that big of a town. Maybe it's just me, but I was expecting a much bigger town. It's actually a very nice town. Not very big, very easy to drive around and great town to vacation in. We went to Ocean City, NJ one night, and the difference stood out. Ocean City is more of a "teenager and young adult" hotspot, while Atlantic City was a "geezer hangout." I think I would choose Atlantic City over Ocean City if I had a choice. It's more laid back, the boardwalk isn't as crowded, the boardwalk is very clean, the beaches are clean, and there are tons of lifeguards. We parked for $5 a day (Kentucky Avenue) less than 100 feet from the boardwalk close to the bathrooms. No beach tags required.
NEVER trust an old lady with a cigarette in her mouth and a beer in her hand while she's sitting at a slot machine. It's a long story, but the summary is that I obviously was not playing the 5 cent slot machine the right way. In my wisdom, I wanted my money to last as long as possible. In her infinite wisdom, she wanted me to lose my money as fast as possible. I learned what "playing 9 lines" meant. It makes sense that if you play "9 lines" - it gives you 9 chances to win on each game. However, it also uses 9 credits each time, instead of 1. That means that I stood up and left 9 times quicker than I wanted to. When I stuck to MY plan, I won $4.40. Who's right now granny? (I pre-apologize to my elder client base, but I speak it like it is.)
When the lifeguard blows his whistle for three minutes straight, he means YOU. I'm not a big fan of deep water, so I didn't expect a whistle to mean ... "Hey YOU! Yes - YOU collecting sea shells. Don't collect over there." Can you believe I got talked to because I was in an area 20 feet from the water? Just to pick up some stupid sea shells. It's not like there were sharks at my feet. Give a teenager a whistle, and they get all power-hungry....
I need to wear a hat on the boardwalk. I don't know what it is about my head. I think I'm a seagull target. Yes. I think you know what I mean. A seagull dropped a bomb on me for the second time. The first time happened a few years ago on the boardwalk and my kids were joking that this year would be the year they would see it happen. No sooner did we see a flock of seagulls (not the band from the 1980's, but an actual group of the birds) - I told them to cover up and watch out! It was me who should have covered up.
STATE OF SCHELL'S WEB DESIGN
HOT & SANDY
Things are pretty busy. When I get back from vacation, I have 16 meetings in 3 days. After that, I'll be starting my new scheduling system to see how it goes. It may work, it may be a flop, but I'm curious to see how it works when I try it 5 days a week.
I'm thinking of opening a branch office in Las Vegas, NV. In the past 4 years, I have a nice list of clients in Las Vegas. It shows how the referral system works, since all clients there were referred to me in one way or another. I guess my Atlantic City vacation was a test run for a Las Vegas vacation...I mean business trip. Somehow, I don't think my accountant will approve that expense, but it couldn't hurt to ask!
I would love to type more, but the keyboard is getting covered in sand and the condensation from my ice-cold beverage is dripping on the keys. I think I hear "Margaritaville" in the distance, so it's time for me to refill.
Here's what I've been listening to lately:
- Jimmy Buffett - Everybody knows Jimmy. I'm not a Parrothead, but I'm pretty close. Beach inspired music with a lean towards country on the last few albums.
- Kenny Chesney - I'm not a big country fan, but I really like Kenny Chesney. He's like a Jimmy Buffett with lots more country. Think of him as a cowboy who wants to own a ranch in Key West Florida.
- The Supersuckers - Eddie Spaghetti and his band. Awesome rock with a country twist. If you like old country from the 50's & 60's and guitar-driven rock, you'll like these guys. Eddie's solo stuff is more of a tribute to old country. It's awesome, as well.
- The Burden Brothers - former members of the Toadies & Reverend Horton Heat's old drummer. If you like basic rock and roll - check them out.
THANKS FOR THE REFERRALS!
Dave Schell
Schell's Web Design
www.imakewebpages.com
dave@imakewebpages.com
Phone/Fax: 717-653-2573
Cell: 717-538-7137
