Teton Volkswagen holds ribbon cutting

Ein ... zwei ... drei ... and the ribbon is cut at Teton Volkswagen on Sunnyside Road. The new dealership has 15,000 square feet, including a service department with at laser-guided alignment rack. It has been more than a year since Teton VW went into business, first on Outlet Boulevard, then on Anderson Street. In that time, they have sold 360 new Volkswagens and more than 600 used cars. At the new permanent, high-visibility location they are hoping to do even better.

Social media marketing expert speaks at chamber luncheon

Tim Hong

This might be disappointing, but even if that "Like Us On Facebook" sign you hung on your store got you 500 likes in two days, it doesn't mean all 500 people who liked you are going to see your posts.

When it comes to marketing and social media, change is not only constant but accelerating, said Tim Hong, strategic alliances senior manager for Adobe.

A 1989 Blackfoot High School graduate, Hong was in Idaho Falls Tuesday to speak at the Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce's 2020 Vision for Business Luncheon.

Advertising spending on social media platforms -- Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, etc. -- has grown exponentially in the last five years, first for desktop computers and now for mobile devices. Done right, online analytics (Hong's expertise) allow advertisers to measure the success of a campaign in far more detail than it was possible with old media advertising (TV, print, radio).

Nevertheless, a lot of business people, especially small business people, might be wondering the same old question: "How do I know what works?"

A lot of people feel the marketing landscape has changed more in the past two years than it did in the previous 50. Two years ago, the focus was on "vanity metrics," e.g. how many "likes" a business could rustle up on Facebook.

But Facebook has been changing its algorithms, to the point now where 2 percent of the people who've liked your page actually see your posts. Of course you can pay to get better exposure, which is what Facebook wants.

Mobile devices have doubled the amount of time people spend online, and advertising budgets for mobile are growing seven times faster than desktop. "The pace of change, is accelerating, not slowing down," Hong said.

He spoke at length about Foursquare, a web and mobile application that allows registered users to post their location at a venue ("check-in") and connect with friends. Check-in requires active user selection and points are awarded at check-in. To date, there have been more than 5 billion check-ins with Foursquare.

For any business that wants to get a return on investment, understanding the audience is still essential. Rather than trying to be all things to all people, it's best to target your message.

"Be an independent voice, relevant to the people who care about you," Hong said. "Don't try to be popular to everybody on social media."

Idaho Falls Sleep Inn wins TripAdvisor award

A screen shot of the hotel's TripAdvisor page

The Idaho Falls Sleep Inn has received a 2014 TripAdvisor Travelers' Choice Exceptional Service Award. Now in its twelfth year, the program names winners based on the quality of reviews and ratings posted online by TripAdvisor travelers.

"We are extremely proud of the Sleep Inn Idaho Falls team for earning this well-deserved recognition," said Anne Smith, vice president of brand strategy for Choice Hotels International, which owns the hotel chain.

Here's one of the reviews, from VickiR53 of Lakeville, Minn.: "We pulled off the highway around 8 pm and didn't see any place to eat but since we were tired we decided to stay. We were so surprised to find they had complementary soup and salad until 9. Very good soup, great salad, garlic bread along with fresh cookies. There were 3 in our group and only one cookies so I inquired at the desk and they said the would bring more in 5 minutes and even asked what kind we wanted! Breakfast was just as good with plenty of seating. And the room was wonderful! We even took pictures to show our friends. We have added Sleep Inn to our list of best places to stay!"

Looking at the Website, it appears that the hotels sales and marketing manager, Matt McGrath, is very good at keeping up with the reviews and replying to them. His answer to VickiR53: "We are always very excited when our hotel is the subject of the first TripAdvisor review someone ever writes. We're glad we made an impression that inspired you to share your experience with others. You mentioned that you had taken some pictures. Would you be willing to post them here?"

This is how it's done in our Web-based world.

Opened in 2010, the Idaho Falls Sleep in is on the west side of Interstate 15 Exit 116. It is owned by the Montana-based Town Pump Group, which recently received the Choice Hotels International Premier Hotelier award at the 60th annual Choice Hotels International Convention in Las Vegas.

As part of the chain-wide Designed to Dream program, Sleep Inn Idaho Falls has already rolled out new bedding and pillows, new guest room lighting, lobby furniture and window treatments toward the design concept's upgrades to guest rooms and public spaces throughout hotel.

Habitat offering competent person safety training class

Habitat for Humanity is offering a Competent Person Safety Training class June 30-July1 for people operating construction sites or associated with construction activities.

It is an OSHA requirement that there be a trained, competent person on a job site. The consequences of not complying could be more than you think.

The training sessions, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., will cover four major safety concerns:

• Fall protection
• Scaffolding
• General job site electrical safety
• Stairways and ladders

The class, which will be held at at Habitat's office, 1954 North Yellowstone Highway, is available to Habitat and non-Habitat members. Attendance is limited to 30 people. Cost is $100, so pre-registration is recommended. The deadline is June 24. Contact Kim Short at 528-0298.

Frontier begins Idaho Falls-Denver service, offers $29 special

Denver bound, the Frontier Airbus jet was saluted with a water arch this morning at Idaho Falls Regional Airport.

With champagne and balloons to greet the early birds, Frontier Airlines launched its first flight from Idaho Falls to Denver this morning.

For anyone interested in a cheap fare to the Mile High City, through Saturday the carrier is selling $29 one-way tickets that are good for any flight Aug. 12 through Nov. 19. Here is the link, and here is the ad:

Teton VW open on Sunnyside, selling cars

The new dealership on Sunnyside Road, Teton Volkswagen, open this week.

It's been touch and go, and there is still work to be done, but Teton Volkswagen has been selling cars this week at its brand new Sunnyside location.

As of Thursday afternoon, six cars had been sold off the lot. It has been more than a year since they opened on the west side of Interstate 15. In February they moved to Anderson Street.

Sales rep Ron Scheneberger said the new location and service department, next door to Teton Toyota, are bound to be a hit once people become aware its open. A grand opening is planned for early August.

Work-life balance is an issue employers can't afford to get wrong

I have to admit I used to loathe the term “work-life balance” while working through college. Being a young motivated professional without children, work-life balance to me meant that I had to do double the work and take extra hours because I was in an office filled with married professionals with children. I felt like every time I turned around one or more of my more co-workers with a spouse or child would get the opportunity to come in later or miss work completely due to child sickness, school related function, family vacation, etc. In turn, I felt like I was inconveniencing my co-workers if I asked for time off for finals or to spend time with my husband prior to any type of deployment or military leave.

Work-life balance to me was a joke – that was until I grew up.

Businesses today are faced with a workplace revolution. Long gone are the "Leave It to Beaver" days of employees unwilling to leave their post from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for any reason other than an occasional break or lunch.

Now we have employees striving to find a careful balance in between juggling and enjoying the pulls of personal lives during their traditional hours and shifts. The fact of the matter is today’s workforce understands and embraces that personal and professional lives intersect and it’s important to figure out how to achieve the right “fit” for both.

According to a recent survey by the Corporate Executive Board, which represents 80 percent of the Fortune 500 companies, compensation is the most important thing to employees. However, workplace balance falls right behind compensation, which means employees in these companies are looking to be paid fairly but also value the programs in place that help them balance both their personal and professional lives.

The survey also reported that employees who feel they have a good work-life balance are 21 percent more productive than those who don’t. This is all based on employee perception, which means it goes above and beyond what you pay your employees.

Companies like Colgate-Palmolive, Google, Coldwell Banker, Disney, and countless others global in scope not only have implemented programs and services to allow work-life balance. They strategically plan and embrace corporate cultures that encourage work-life balance.

Let’s take Google as the most unique example of work-life balance. Google actually has created a scientific approach to work-life balance at their corporate headquarters using the results from semi-annual surveys provided to 4,000 Google employees. Google has consistently found through these surveys that a majority of their employee base has difficulty switching off from work. So Google has
also tried to create programs to help them do this.

One great example: In March 2014 the company asked all Dublin, Ireland, employees to leave company-provided electronic devices at the front desk for the evening. The experiment called Google Goes Dark has reportedly been extremely successful for the employees who have participated.
Participating employees have reported getting better sleep at night, reduced stress levels, better productivity during office hours, and less absenteeism. This exercise was simple yet effective for Google and has required no out-of pocket cost, but has resulted in immeasurable cost savings to the company.

Google’s example and dedication shows us that work-life balance efforts work and in turn are important to today’s workforce.

Now before all of my friends in management start wanting to print this blog off and use it as a stapler target, hear me out on a few things. Work-life balance is a very flexible effort by businesses, and it can be catered to meet business needs. It can be as simple as implementing a fair and reasonable PTO policy, allowing telecommuting, flex-time hours, or even discounted gym memberships. Some
of these options may involve financial commitment, but others may be little to no cost and have huge returns with more productive, efficient, and effective employees.

So, how the heck can you even decide on what to do for work-life balance with your employees? It’s pretty simple. Ask them what is most important to them. Start at the source and create programs and strategies that are based on what they value most. Engaging employees creates a buy-in, especially from the standpoint that employees feel their employers care.

On a cautionary note though, all work-life programs and offerings should be carefully designed to integrate into a company’s employment policies. Additionally, these programs and offerings have to be offered in a streamlined fashion for all eligible employees.

Businesses that choose not to implement any work-life balance programs or offerings are and will continue to trudge behind businesses that do. Not only are these businesses at risk for high employee turnover (which in turn has a high price when it comes to continued efforts to recruit, hire, and train individuals), but they are also at risk for the high cost of continuing to have employees with increased absenteeism rates, low productivity, and high likelihood of health issues. This last part can lead to higher healthcare costs and/or workers’ compensation claims.

Take the time and effort to create or invigorate your work-life balance strategies. The returns to the programs are high and costs are low. Keep this in mind this summer when your administrative assistant asks to take off work a little early on Friday afternoon to enjoy some fun in the sun. It’s well worth the couple hours he or she isn’t glued to a computer and telephone.
Monica Bitrick is the CEO of Bitrick Consulting Group in Idaho Falls.