Low Cost Ways to Keep Long Term Employees

Very few small businesses can compete with the "big boys" when it comes to benefit packages. For most of us, benefit packages are limited (if we have them at all), and even paid time off can put a strain on operating capital.

Our company is located in Michigan which is currently one of the most economically depressed regions in the US. Automotive and industrial plants are closing weekly, homes are going into foreclosure, and many families that were once making six figures are now struggling to put food on the table. When a large plant closes so does a host of other small businesses due to the "trickle down" effect.

So what can a small company do when they can't offer major benefit packages? How can they retain long-term employees on a limited budget? This video offers some creative ideas that have worked for us through the years. The video expresses only a few of the many ways we reward employees (see more below). We believe we are doing something right. Our employee attendance rate is nearly 100% and turnover rate is less than 1%. We continually look for new ways to make this a fun place to work while remaining customer focused.

Other employee "perks" to consider:

• Educational Reimbursement. Our company offers employees a $750 tuition reimbursment per year.
  
  
• Twice a year, we take employees to dinner at an up-scale restaurant. Employees jointly pick the place we dine. We all dress up and have a night of fun.
  
  
• If an employee needs something to help them do their job better or more efficiently, we get it! No one knows the job better than the person doing it.
  
  
• Holiday bonuses based on years of service.
  
  
• Cash bonus and lunch on us whenever there is a birthday.
  
  
• This year we are implementing a wellness fund. Employees on the payroll for one year will receive an annual $125.00 wellness reimbursement for anything related to their mental, physical, or spiritual well-being.
  

You Might As Well Dance!

"Life may not be the party we hoped for,
but while we're here we should dance."

Every sixty seconds you spend upset, is a minute of happiness you'll never get back. Today's Message of the Day is:

Life is short, break the rules. Forgive quickly, kiss slowly. Love truly, laugh uncontrollably. And never regret anything that made you smile.

Soap Making: Hippie Chick Retro Flower Soap

You'll love groovin' in the shower (and not just on a Sunday afternoon) with this far-out and hip retro flower soap.

The instructional video from Squeaky Clean Productions gives step-by-step directions for making these fab hippie chick soaps. You can purchase the supplies for this soap project at GoPlanetEarth.com.

For those of you who remember the 60's and early 70's you'll want to check out these two sites. Reading the "lingo" is like taking a trip down memory lane.

http://www.cougartown.com/slang.html

http://www.4starbiz.com/missdeal/lingo.html
 

 

How to Make Sea Salt Gemstone Soaps

Another instructional video from GoPlanetEarth. Learn to make sea salt gemstone soaps. This project offers a host of unlimited variations. For printed instructions, visit the project page at GoPlanetEarth.com.

 

All of the supplies for this project can be purchased at http://www.goplanetearth.com/.

The new Thesaurus Arrived Today!!

For those of you who follow this blog, you know that I recently posted about my Thesaurus that was 30-plus years old. Well, I finally laid the weary soul to rest and purchased a new one from Staples.

Why in the world I waited so long to buy a new one is beyond me. My gosh, I can actually flip through it without pages falling out and the words are in bold print. Imagine that... bold print, I wonder what year they started doing that! When I ammoritize the cost of the book over 30 years, it will have cost me 25 cents per year.

Soap with a Heart... a strawberry heart that is

Here's another great soap making project from GoPlanetEarth's Squeaky Clean Production company. It's a strawberry soap made from Mold Market's plain heart mold. The green strawberry stem is a mini 5 point star cut to fit the curve of the heart. Droplets of white soap are used for the strawberry seeds. This is an ideal soap for a strawberry festival (like Plant City annual festival in Florida).

View Squeaky Clean Productions how-to video. All of the supplies for this soap making project can be purchased from http://www.goplanetearth.com/.

All I REALLY wanted for Christmas was a new Thesaurus

Take a look a this pathetic looking Thesaurus. Yes, it's mine and there is certainly no doubt I've gotten my money's worth. I'm not sure how old it is, but an educated guess dates it to around 1975. Sorry to say, I still use it. As you can see from the picture, it has no front or back cover, the binding is way past the point of taping, and the top pages are yellowed with age.

Every year I put a "new Thesaurus" on my Christmas wish list. And every year... it's zippa-zotta-notta one-a person buys it for me. It's the absolute "cheapest" item I put on my Christmas list. I just don't get it.

Obviously I can afford to buy a new one myself, but it simply never occurs to me when I'm out and about. It's only when I pull it off my bookshelf and shuffle through the mangled, unbound pages that I remember I need to buy a new one.

So here's my New's Year resolution....

There comes a point when you must say good-by to a long-time loyal companion, especially a companion that is on their last leg of life's journey... a companion who begs to be put out of their misery and buried with dignity. So, that is what I will do. I will bury my long-time companion, my devoted Thesaurus. I am saddened by my friend's departure. My dear friend has been at my side for a host of writing endeavors including college papers, a thesis, articles, newsletters, and even wedding vows . But alas, there is hope, I just did a Google search and find that Staples has a Thesaurus for a mere $7.50.

A whole other meaning to the term "Hand Soap"

Now here's a bar of hand soap you can literally shake hands with. One thing's for certain; your house guests can't possibly miss it in the powder room. For heaven's sake! Why put out all those cutesy little guest soaps when you can put out a friendly, giant size hand? Just for the record, this baby topped the scale at 17.5 ounces. That's over one pound!!

This whole project evolved because my 4 1/2 year old grandson wanted to help me make soap. He insisted on wearing latex gloves just like NeeNee (between you and me... the only reason he wanted to help was to wear the gloves). Within minutes he became bored with the whole project until I suggested we make a "hand" soap using one of the latex gloves he was wearing. This immediately piqued his interest. Here is the result of our hands-on project (Yes, pun was intended!)

BTW...my grandson is taking the hand soap to show & tell day at his pre-school. I would love to record his version of how we made the soap. Surely it would find it's way into one of Art Linkletter's Kids Say the Darndest Things books. Did I mention he picked the blue color and apple fragrance? He told me he picked apple because I keep apple gum in my purse just for him, and blue because NeeNee's eyes are blue.

View the instructional video below:

Labeling Your Soaps for Resale

OK, you've made your soap, now what?

Both the US Food and Drug (FDA) Administration and US Consumer Product Safety Commission have specific regulations on labeling a bar of soap. In this post, I've given only the basics. I suggest you pay a visit to the FDA website for more in-depth resources.


Cosmetic vs/ non-cosmetic:

• A bar of soap is deemed non-cosmetic if no special claims are made beyond the fact that it cleanses the skin and is represented solely as soap.

• A bar of soap is deemed cosmetic if claims are made that is moistuizes, exfoliates, heals, beautifies, or makes any other claims beyond cleansing the skin.
  
  

Labeling a cosmetic soap bar:

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the labeling requirements for cosmetic products. The label for a bar of soap must contain the following six components:

• Ingredients in descending order of predominance
  
  
• Net weight of soap
  
  
• The word "soap" displayed on the Principal Display Panel (PDP). This is usually on the front panel of label.
  
  
• Name and place of business. The street address may be omitted if your business is listed in a current city or telephone directory.
  
  
• A warning statement whenever necessary or appropriate to prevent a health hazard that may be associated with the product.
  
  
• Directions for safe use

Labeling a non-cosmetic soap bar:

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission administrates and regulates the safety of personal care products that are non-cosmetic. Three key elements must appear on the label.

• The word "soap". Examples include" "Cucumber Melon Soap", Fragrant Soap Slice, Maggie's Handmade Soap
  
  
• Net weight of soap
  
  
• Company name and place of business

These are only the basics. Comprehensive labeling information is available at the FDA web site listed above. Another highly recommended resource is a book by Marie Gale, Soap & Cosmetic Labeling, How to Follow the Rules and Regulations Explained in Plain English. If you order the book, let Marie know that Denise from GoPlanetEarth.com sent you her way!

How to Make Cupid's Heart Soap

Can you believe it? We are almost into mid-January and Valentine's Day is just around the corner. If you're looking for a quick and easy Valentine's soap project, this Cupid's Heart Soap might fit the bill. Hey, we've even offered a few suggestions for the gift card. Consider packaging in a colorful heart printed cello bag tied with red, white and pink curly ribbon.

All of the supplies for this soap making project can be purchased from http://www.goplanetearth.com/.
 

Suggested gift card verbage:

• Wishes from the heart
• You spread love wherever you go
• Thank you for the love we share
• Love always come along when you least expect it
• You're always in my heart
• You have a heart of gold(color soap heart in a gold color)
• The heart rules
• My heart beats for you
• Lather me in love
• Let's lather up some love
• Please, don't break my heart
• Bathe me in love

Make Rainbow Colored Soap Labels with Shaving Cream

Here is a unique, inexpensive and simple method for creating banded soap labels. Print the labels using a laser printer. You can print the labels on any paper type that is suitable for laser printers, including color card stock. Once you've printed the text for your labels, follow the instructions given in this How-To video. (NOTE: Do not try to print text once you have colored the paper. It could damage your print cartridges.)

This is a fun project to do with kids. The guest artist in this instructional is my grandson, Carson. He did an incredible job and definitely enjoyed watching himself on the 'puter (that's short for computer).

Look for an upcoming post about how to label your soap for resale. Learn what info must be listed on soap labels.

Instructional Video: How to Make Duck Pond Soaps with Rubber Ducks

You won't want to miss this new instructional video from GoPlanetEarth on Duck Pond Soaps. It's just one of the many "how-to" soap making videos we have coming your way in 2008. All of the supplies for this project can be purchased at www.GoPlanetEarth.com. Please let us know what you think about this "how-to" video.

Here's what you'll need:
Rubber Ducks
Soap Base
Duck Pond Mold
Soap Color
Fragrance (optional)If using fragrance, add to soap base when you add soap color

SOAP MOLD OVERSTOCK. Up to 60% savings

It's time for us to clear out the warehouse shelves for incoming 2008 stock. We have discounted a number of soap molds that are overstock, discontinued, or end-of-season designs. These are "top quality" molds and quite honestly, it's a "steal deal".

Take advantage of these year end savings now!

You'll find a complete list of the molds at GoPlanetEarth.com.

2008 Soap Making Trends

Pictured above: French-milled soaps for your A-List Baby from Noodle & Boo.com. Just another one of the "premium" type bath and body to expect in 2008.

Keeping up with consumer trends is essential to building a profitable product line for your E-Biz. Rarely do trends pop out of nowhere. In most cases, they are a blending of mulitple trends that merge into the next big trend. Statistics show that the annual income of an online shopper is $75,000 plus, with many more millionaires taking the online leap.

Begin to study magazine ads and read trade articles; look at what is currently hot, start to analyze and sharpen your skills to spot new trends that will give rise to new products within your industry. Ultimately, the goal of trend watching is to explore new ideas that will lead to profitable product innovations. Here are three trends I see for 2008.

1) The Premiumization of everything and anything. No product will escape a premium version in the next 12 months. With money to burn, more and more consumers will be looking for quick status fixes derived from premium products.

A great example of this trend is represented by The Laundress. Lindsey Wieber and Gwen Whiting, co-founders of The Laundress™, created this luxury fabric care and specialty detergent line to take the chore out of laundry. They saw the necessity of properly caring for their clothing and homes, but were not able to find products on the market that met their standards of delicacy, fragrance and sophistication. This propelled these entrepreneurs to design a luxurious brand of detergents and fabric care with their own uniquely developed fragrances.



Expect to find the same trend with lotions, shower gels, soaps, and other bath and body products. Start looking for ways that you can "Premiumize" your current product line or, develop new lines that are a step beyond the average. and then market them as up-scale, sophisticated bath and body products.

2) Eco Status Sphere is not stopping in 2008. In fact, expect to see trends for both green and blue. Consumers will continue to seek out products that are organic and ego-friendly. Consider using bath and body containers that can be recycled or refilled. Products geared toward fitness and outdoor living will continue to grow. Foot and hand care, body soaks, lip balms are all products that can be developed to greenify the life's of a ego-conscious consumer.

3) Expect online sub-cultures like Face Book and My Space to begin dominating the advertising and selling world. Do-It-Yourself and Make-It-Yourself will continue to emerge from this thriving online sub-culture.

CafePress.com is already offering this type of online platform, but you will begin to see FaceBook and MySpace users doing the same. The days of offering a limited number of choices to online customers, is becoming a thing of the past.

A make your own "virtual" bath and body product web site may be something to consider. Generation C is here to stay. What is Generation C? The Wikopedia definition: People who use the web to create user generated content and participate in the co-creation of products and services.

As 2007 comes to a close, I wish each of you great success in your 2008 business ventures. GoPlanetEarth.com will continue to supply you with products that will help you reach your goals. As the owner, I sincerely thank each and every one of you for your continued business and support. So many of you have become like family to us. We look forward to servicing your soap making needs in 2008.

Happy holidays and Merry Christmas to all of you!

Denise & the GoPlanet Team

Etsy: A DIY Crafting Community

Pictured: Chunky pieces of peppermint bark -- entirely made of soap.

Etsy.com is an online community with a mission that enables people to earn a living "making" things. Esty.com then connects those makers with online buyers. In a nutshell, they are creating micro-economies within corporate America. The vision of Etsy is to build a new economy and present a better choice of goods. These goods, by the way, are all handmade.

As posted on the Etsy site:


"The connection between producer and consumer has been lost. We created Etsy to help them reconnect, and swing the pendulum back to a time when we bought our bread from the baker, food from the grocer, and shoes from the cobbler. "


If you are not yet familiar with Etsy.com, I encourage you to check it out. It's a haven for those making hand-made products. Even if you don't make anything hand-made, you'll find it the place to buy ALL things handmade.

As we move into a new year, may each of us be aware of the social and environmental implications of our purchases and become a consumer conscious of the true value of handmade goods. My personal New Year resolution is to buy handmade whenever possible.

Pictured is Death by Cinnamon. It's a heavily scented soap topped with cinnamon "syrup" -- a thick bar, lusciously creamy and excitingly spicy. It's available at Esty.

Beating Heart Soap

The things one can find to do with melt and pour soap. I've been in this business a good number of years; I must admit, this is a first for me.

This link gives instructions on how to make a flashing soap that emulates the beating of a heart. I would take heed to the writer's words of CAUTION about using an LCD battery in soap. I'm certain this can work, BUT I would sure hate to lose any of you to a heart throbbing soap explosion. Might be best if you just let this spark some inventive soap making ideas for the new year.

A thank you gift from Tuesday Soap Night

This beautiful holiday wreath arrived today from a local florist. It was sent by my next door neighbor in thanks for hosting Soap night (see my prior post). It was a delightful surprise, and I immediately hung the wreath outside the front door of my home.

The card read, "Thanks for an evening of good "clean" fun. I am blessed with the best neighbors anyone could have."

This post is for Nancy. My wonderful neighbor and friend. Everyone should be lucky enough to have great neighbors. I have been fortunate. All my neighbors (including former neighbors) are still very much a part of my life. Even with moves, life changes, kids growing up... we've kept in contact and remain close friends.

Life is good when you're surrounded by friends. Today, I give thanks for the gift of friendship.

Tuesday Soap Night

On Tuesday I hosted a "Holiday Soap Night". It was an evening of soaping, socializing, and sipping wine (what's a soap night without a little wine??). Everyone made four soaps for our grandkids (one duck pond soap, one bendable holiday character soap, and two cupcake soaps) . I've posted a few pictures of our event.

Post Script: I am fortunate to have one of the most wonderful group of lady friends. The more time I spend with them, the more I treasure and appreciate their friendship. Life is good when you're surrounded by incredible friends.

All of the supplies used can be purchased at GoPlanetEarth.com.

Missy (far left), my long-time employee, is showing the gals how to add the snow effects to the top of the duck pond soaps.

Betty is putting the finishing touches on her bendable holiday soap.

Our lovely, crazy Mo (short for Maureen) showcasing her work.

A few Christmas Decorating Ideas

The holiday season is upon us and I thought a few decorating ideas were in order. Hope these inspire you to dig out those boxes of Christmas lights from the attic and make this year's Christmas merry and BRIGHT!

If you're looking for more holiday decorating ideas, pay a visit to uglychristmaslights.com. I guarantee you'll find something that strikes your fancy.










In the above picture, I'm guessing the canopy tent is where the manger scene is set-up. The homeowners didn't want Jesus, Mary and Joseph to be out in the rain or snow. It just wouldn't be right.

The house with all the lights.... again, I'm just guessing, but I bet there were no lights left at the local Wal-mart after this homeowner left the store. Thankfully, none of these homeowners are my neighbors! In fact, these pictures inspire me. Not to decorate, but to send a wonderful gift to my neighbors for NOT decorating.

Sure hope all of you are making time to enjoy this joyous holiday season.

Bath Salt Sundae... a great holiday gift

Instead of an ice cream sundae, how about a bath salt sundae? This is a great project to do with kids.

Here's what you'll need:

1) Ice cream sundae dish. I suggest checking Dollar stores and restaurant supply stores in your area.

2) Bath Salts

3) Nylon Bath Puff

4) Sea Salt Colorants (if desired)

5) Fragrance Oil (if desired)

6) Plastic sundae spoon. Check out your local ice cream shops.

Color and scent the salts. If you want to get creative, you can layer the salts in different colors. Place the sundae spoon into the dish and then add salts. Finish off your soap sundae by attaching a bath puff to the salts. You can use a glue gun or drizzle some melt and pour soap over the top of the bath puff allowing the soap to seep down in th salts so that it seats the puff. Top off the salt sundae with a red cherrie made from soap or a red bath bead.

Use the spoon to sprinkle salts into your next bath. You'll be saying Ooohh-la-la the next time you soak in the tub.