Serving Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Kern, Ventura & Clark Counties
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Entrepreneurial Thinking & the Printing Industry
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Times are tough. Are we heading into a V-shaped recovery, or are we heading into a recession that will shake the world to its core? What if I told you it didn’t matter?
Don’t get me wrong. I know the numbers.
Los Angeles County’s unemployment rate went from 3.9 percent in January to 20.3 percent in April. According to the
Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp
, it could reach 32% by the end of May. That’s the highest rate of unemployment since the Great Depression.
This past February saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average reached an all-time high of 29569.58. By March 23 it dropped to 18,591.93. Then, last week, it closed at 27,110.98. While our financial future may seem uncertain, remember, your future is in your hands. If you want to survive and thrive in the future, you should take your cue from the past.
The Great Depression
According to
Ivan Light
, Sociology Professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, financial situations like the Great Depression create a specific breed of entrepreneurs. He calls them “survivalist entrepreneurs.” You may not think of yourself as an entrepreneur. Still, I can tell you this, no matter how you got into the printing industry, whether you inherited the company from your parents, joined your brother in a business venture, or started your own company, at this time, we all need to think like entrepreneurs.
During the Great Depression of the 1930s, many entrepreneurs started companies out of necessity. The good news is they have survived until today.
In 1928, husband and wife team O.D. and Ruth McKee sold five-cent cakes out of their family car in Chattanooga, Tennessee. By 1934, in the depths of the depression, they bought a bakery and started a company that today is worth an estimated $1.4 billion. The McKee’s granddaughter, whose image appears on the company’s packaging, is the current
Executive Vice President of McKee Foods
, the makers of Little Debbie cookie and cake-based dessert snacks.
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8 Ways to Use the LinkedIn Mobile App for Business
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#1: Get More Characters in Your LinkedIn Headline via the Mobile App
Whenever you search for connections or view content on LinkedIn, you see each person’s name, profile photo, and headline. Although updating your
LinkedIn profile
might be easier on desktop than mobile, there’s a 120-character limit on your headline. If you want to go beyond the default “job title and company name” headline and be more creative, 120 characters can be restrictive.
The benefit of updating your profile via the
LinkedIn mobile app
is that you can add some extra characters to your headline—at least 200. This may or may not be useful, as there are times when a headline gets cropped in both desktop and mobile views. But if you’re struggling to fit your message within 120 characters, try editing your profile via the app.
#2: Personalize LinkedIn Connection Requests via the Mobile App
Making a great first impression is important and sending a personalized message with your LinkedIn connection requests is a great way to stand out from the crowd of generic “I’d like to join your LinkedIn network” default messages. Personalized messaging also lets you start a conversation and build relationships—the essence of doing business successfully.
When you’re using LinkedIn to
build a powerful network
, members are more likely to accept invitations that include a personal note. There’s no excuse—you can personalize a connection request from the LinkedIn mobile app.
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PIASC’s Board of Directors and staff welcome the following members, who joined between November 2019 and June 2020:
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Altered Images
Prepress and Printing Services
(310) 538-1500
Connect Overnight Inc.
Urgent Direct Mail Processing
(805) 256-1611
Flexable Graphic Solutions, Inc.
Service Provider – Consulting
(714) 457-0126
Foil Image Elite, Inc.
Finishing
(562) 634-2630
Jet Letter Corp.
Variable Data Printing Software
(949) 721-8786
JN Printing & Packaging Inc.
Print & Packaging Broker
(714) 823-1325
Le Te Obsequios
Graphics Broker Partner
(323) 796-1736
Mid-City Mailing Services Corporation
Direct Mail
(310) 532-6422
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Print Depot
Commercial Printing
(323) 734-3606
Shield IT Networks
Internet Service Provider
(800) 711-5522
Southland Printing Company
Commercial Printing
(626) 334-1244
USA Printing
Trade Commercial Printing
(310) 560-8770
VIP Direct Response LLC
Direct Mail Services
(949) 438-9255
Wallace Lithographics
Trade Offset
(626) 567-0114
Westrock MPS-Corona
Folding Carton Printer, Commercial Printer, Cold Foil
(951) 273-7900
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Know a company that could benefit from our services and benefits the same way you do? Refer a friend and get money back towards your dues! Contact Kristy Villanueva at
kristy@piasc.org
or 323.728.9500, Ext. 215
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Congress Loosens Paycheck Protection Program Rules
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Just when you’ve started to wrap your head around all of the rules for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), they’ve changed. Luckily, the changes are meant to make it
easier
for program participants to qualify for loan forgiveness.
On June 5 the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020 was signed into law. Here are some of the highlights:
“Covered period” extended to 24 weeks
– You now have up to 24 weeks (or until December 31, 2020, whichever comes first) to use the loan proceeds to pay for payroll and other allowed costs.
Amount that must be used for payroll costs reduced to 60%
– The remaining 40% can be used for eligible mortgage interest, rent and utility payments.
Reductions in workforce can sometimes be excused
– In the PPP, the amount of loan forgiveness is reduced if you reduce your number of full-time employees (based on a specific formula for calculating this). Now you won’t be dinged for reductions in workforce if you can document in good faith that one of the following is true:
- You could not rehire the individuals or similarly-qualified individuals for the unfilled positions on or before December 31, 2020; or
- You could not return to the same level of business activity as before February 15, 2020, due to COVID-19-related sanitation, safety or social distancing requirements established by, or guidance provided by, the Department of Health and Human Services, the CDC or OSHA between March 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020.
PIASC anticipates hosting a webinar on the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for more details!
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Bobis 118” Illuminated Multi-Application Table, Model 160/300LH w/Automatic Height Adjustment
Demo Unit, slightly used, ready for demonstration. Call for more information and pricing. Contact: Gordon Campbell of Cal Comp Graphic Solutions, at 714-425-4446.
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Royal Sovereign RCS-1651LS 65” Cold/Laminator
Demo Unit, barely used, ready for pick up or delivery. Call for pricing. Contact: Gordon Campbell of Cal Comp Graphic Solutions, at 714-425-4446.
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Gerber Solara ion UV Ink Jet Printer
USED. Best offer. Boxed and ready to go. Pick-up in City of Industry. Spare parts included. Contact Tom at 562-447-9982,
tom@jbcsafety.com.
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Want to place a classified ad? Contact Wendy Ferrer-Ferruz, 323.728.9500, Ext. 262,
wendy@piasc.org
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Many Employee Benefit Timeframes Temporarily Extended
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Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a variety of federal departments have extended certain deadlines related to employee benefit plans. The extensions affect employee pension benefit plans and all group health plans, disability or other employee welfare benefit plans, as well as the participants and beneficiaries of the applicable plans.
As part of this extension the period of time beginning on March 1, 2020 and ending 60 days after the announced end of the National Emergency (or other date announced by the government in a future notice) has been designated as the “Outbreak Period.”
Affected plans are directed to disregard the Outbreak Period when determining the last day to comply with certain deadlines, including deadlines related to:
- Special enrollment periods
- COBRA notifications, elections and payments
- Plan claims and appeals
- External reviews of plan adverse benefit determinations
For other items, plans should comply with deadlines during the Outbreak Period as soon as it is administratively practicable to do so. Deadlines are delayed and requirements are relaxed for:
- Furnishing certain notices, disclosures and other documents required by Title 1 of ERISA over which the DOL has authority
- Procedures for plan loans and distributions
- Forwarding participant payments and withholdings to employee pension benefit plans
- Issuing advance notice of blackout periods
- Filing Form 5500 and Form M-1
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Struggling to figure out how to safely keep your operation running
in the midst of an on-going pandemic? You’re in good company!
Join us for this educational webinar on Tuesday June 30. Safety expert John Holland, Certified OSHA Trainer and President of Assured Compliance Solutions, Inc., will share best practices for keeping employees and visitors safe, including:
- Installing new signage throughout your facility
- Implementing employee pre-shift medical screenings
- Cleaning commonly-touched surfaces
- Wearing face masks
- Addressing safety concerns specific to each area of your facility, including reception, conference room, break room, prepress, press area, digital, mailing, bindery, shipping and receiving
- Delivering orders to your customers
You will also have the opportunity to ask your questions live.
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PRINTING United 2020 is on Track to Reunite and Revitalize the Industry
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PRINTING United
is on track to happen as planned at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta on October 21-23, 2020. With health and safety guidelines at the forefront of planning for this important industry event, the annual showcase will give attendees and exhibitors the opportunity to engage and see the latest industry technology, experience worldwide product debuts, and participate in educational programming that will equip companies with the latest statistics and powerful resources for 2021 and beyond.
PRINTING United Alliance, organizer of PRINTING United Expo, continues to be committed in helping the printing industry navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. The organization, newly formed from the SGIA and PIA merger, has developed several “go-to” resources for the printing industry, including the comprehensive COVID-19 Resource Channel, a dedicated “COVID-19: Ask the Experts” webinar series, the latest in financial and legislative support, and resources for reopening businesses. Building on this body of knowledge and experience, the PRINTING United Expo is the next step in helping the industry reopen its businesses and plan for the future.
“Key indicators suggest the economy will grow robustly in 2021, giving the printing industry a big boost,” says Andy Paparozzi, Chief Economist, PRINTING United Alliance. “PRINTING United’s unparalleled networking and educational opportunities will prepare attendees to participate fully in the upturn ahead.”
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"If you talk about it, it's a dream. If you envision it, it's possible. But if you schedule it, it's real."
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