by Joseph Garnett | Jun 15, 2018 | blogging
Declaring Your Love
Love is in the air. As we get closer to the month of June, more couples celebrate their love with wedding ceremonies. As you and your fiancé affirm your vows in front of friends and family, many plans must be accomplished to get you to that moment.
For instance, the dress, bride’s maids, groomsmen, decorations, the guest list, and the cake. Finding the right wedding photographer for better wedding pictures from your day is extremely important, too.
Having an experienced wedding photographer makes the difference in the quality of photographs you receive after your big day has passed. Once the day or moment has passed, there is no getting it back. Often, the events of the day become a blur. An observant photographer, like PhotosinMotion.net, will pleasantly surprise you with photos of moments you may have missed or forgotten.
7 Steps For Better Wedding Pictures
PhotosinMotion.net compiled a short list to help you decide how to select the right Tampa Bay wedding photographer and get the most from the photo opportunities. Yes, these are only 7 suggestions from other photographers and PhotosinMotion.net. There are many more, but these will get you started and provide tremendous help towards getting better wedding pictures.
1. Meet Your Photographer Beforehand
First, if your wedding is coming up in the next month or so and you haven’t gotten a photographer, find a professional experienced wedding photographer fast! Your photographs depend on it! Besides, you don’t want to settle for second-rate. Then, meet with your photographer. Even if you are familiar with their work or the photographer is recommended by friends or family, take advantage of meeting and discussing details. Try scheduling a meeting at your wedding venue and discuss locations for photo opportunities.
2. What is Your Budget?
Yes, weddings are expensive these days. Most wedding photographers work on an hourly or day rate, depending on the length of time for the wedding. So, having a realistic number in mind will help your decision-making process.
3. Create a Photo Shoot Schedule for the Wedding Day
Wedding schedules are critical. Often a venue may have more than just your ceremony booked for the day. So, it’s imperative that things go smoothly. Yes, there will be hick-ups that cause delays. However, the more you outline your photo schedule, the less stressful the day will be.
Here is an example from several photographers on how your schedule may look:
- Photos in the bride’s suite pre-dress/hair/makeup etc.
- Groomsmen doing their thing
- Bride getting dressed
- Wedding ceremony
- Married couple of photos
- Wedding Party photos
- Friends/Family/posed photos
- Reception
- Announce couple
- First dance
- Father/daughter dance
- Mother/son dance
- Cutting the cake
- Dance floor
- Send-off
4. List Everyone You Want photographed with you
Another way to help your photographer is by making a list of everyone you and your fiancé would like to be photographed with. Many times, wedding photographers hear couples say that they didn’t get a photo with person x. If you really want a special photo with anyone, please put them on the list.
5. Ask for your photographer’s advice
Decide on where your family, bridal party, and romantic pictures should be taken so you get variety in your photos. As stated in the first suggestion, as you meet with your photographer at the venue finding onsite locations presents a great opportunity to make these decisions.
6. Are you using a wedding planner?
If a wedding planner is involved, getting the details you need will almost certainly be quicker and easier. Without a wedding planner, you could end up spending a lot of time gathering information (and managing expectations).
7. Can’t Afford a Wedding Planner?
PhotosinMotion.net realizes that everyone’s budget can’t afford a wedding planner. That’s ok. Besides, even though your wedding is a big day in your life, it’s still just one day. So, don’t stress if you can’t afford one. You may have to lean on friends and family members for help.
To keep the photography schedule flowing smoothly and herding everyone who needs to be in the photos, PhotosinMotion.net recommends appointing a respected member of the family. Every family has that one member that everyone seems to listen to and doesn’t want to cross. This person can deliver a look to get everyone else to comply. Recruit that person to assist the photographer in getting everyone where they need to be. PhotosinMotion.net has found this to be the most effective way of handling the small budget wedding schedule.
Still More Planning Steps
PhotosinMotion.net realizes that there are many other steps and considerations for planning with a wedding photographer. There are many that we could not get to in the space of this blog. As you begin to plan, other things may come to light, like letting the photographer know your favorite features of the dress, first look, photographing the venue before guests arrive, and all the getting-dressed photos. We hope this compilation from us and other wedding photographers help you have a more enjoyable wedding day.
Please contact PhotosinMotion.net for yours or a friend’s big day. We would love to capture those special moments for you.
by Joseph Garnett | Jun 15, 2018 | blogging
The commercial real estate market experiences highs and lows as the economic trends shift due to politics, policies or other economic events. As brokers, continuously adding a few new options to the repertoire may help improve client relationships and grow the company. The IRS Section 170 Bargain Sale is becoming more in-demand by clients who want to minimize tax exposure. The Bargain Sale may be for such clients looking to sell performing assets or underutilized and distressed properties.
Businessman Investor Construction Sale Property Concept.
A qualified appraiser must perform the Bargain Sale valuation. The asset is compared to other property that is fully performing in the same or neighboring market. This valuation’s outcome may be higher than the original listing price. To learn more, please read an earlier post How Bargain Sale Valuations Work.
About the Bargain Sale
The IRS Section 170 Bargain Sale originates from the War Revenue Act of 1917 that the United States Government passed. It shares some similarities with the well-known 1031 Exchange, where the tax code is used to protect wealth and economic growth. However, there is a notable difference between a Bargain Sale and the 1031 Exchange. Instead of just deferring taxes, like 1031, the Bargain Sale provides immediate tax benefits that can be used the same year as the transaction and up to 5 additional years.
Nonprofit Qualifications
The Bargain Sale made to a nonprofit entity that is federally recognized by the 501(c)(3) criteria. It is considered best practice for the nonprofit to obtain validation from one of the charity monitoring organizations. These organizations, like GuideStar, rank the nonprofits based on the use of funds, fundraising, board members and activities related to their causes. All information about the nonprofits may be found on the monitoring agencies’ websites. This action provides transparency and allows Sellers to determine if they want to complete a transaction with the nonprofit.
Bargain Sale is “Not” a Donation
Although there must be a donative intent, combining the cash received at closing with a tax rebate, the Bargain Sale’s benefits may be immense. It is important to note that the Bargain Sale is not a donation. Cash is received at closing and is combined with the tax deduction benefit of the contribution between the appraised value and the cash received.
However, some transactions may have the appearance of a donation as the seller may decide to not take any cash in the transaction. As a result, commercial buyers may find themselves saving significant amounts of income tax by utilizing a Bargain Sale for their property disposition or tax strategy.
Searching for Assets
When taking advantage of the Bargain Sale for clients, brokers should consider looking for opportunities of almost any asset that has appreciated from its basis. By selling at a potentially higher valuation rate, as per the Bargain Sale terms, the broker may facilitate a win-win situation for the seller and the nonprofit organization. The seller gets the tax benefits, which is the difference in property value minus cash received at closing. Afterward, the nonprofit takes the property to either use or sell to raise funding for its charitable causes.
Brokers’ Incentives
As for the broker’s commission, it is based on the total financial benefit to the seller. As stated earlier, the total financial benefit is a combination of the cash amount and the federal and tax savings. The selling broker’s commission is usually based on the seller’s total financial benefit which is often near the list price.
Smart brokers looking to grow a business and their clients’ best interest should be informed about the Bargain Sale. Commercial transactions totaling over $8 billion are completed every year in the form of the IRS Section 170 Bargain Sale.
Welfont Can Help
Welfont has a wealth of experience with the Bargain Sale. We are the experts with over 10 million square feet of acquisition in more than 30 states. We are familiar with the Bargain Sale Appraisal process and can help you achieve the most in cash and tax deductions for your asset. If you would like more information, please visit our FAQ page or email us at info@welfont.com. We can help provide answers for your specific property.
Written by The Welfont Group, LLC
The content found on this Welfont.com page is for educational purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal, financial, or tax advice. Please consult your attorney, accountant, tax or other advisers before acting on any information found here.
by Joseph Garnett | Jun 15, 2018 | blogging
In the 1980s and 1990s, many U.S. businesses moved their manufacturing operations overseas. When they departed, they left a series of old industrial buildings in their wake. Now, however, many of these factories are in hot demand. The repurposing of these old industrial buildings often sparks a community renaissance, potentially driving up real estate prices and boosting economic activity. The following three examples show how reviving an older building stimulated the economic growth.
The Pratt Street Power Plant, Baltimore, MD
The Pratt Street Power Plant was built in the early 20th century. The plant was once a main source of power for the United Railways and Electric Company. However, during the 1980’s, the building was retired and left abandoned for many years. After two unsuccessful attempts at redevelopment, the power plant is now home to offices, stores, and restaurants. Situated right in the downtown of Baltimore, the refurbished building has provided much-needed economic stimulus to the city.
U.S. Steel South Works Building, Chicago, IL
The U.S. Steel South Works building first opened in 1882 as the North Chicago Railway Mill Company. U.S. Steel South Works later purchased it years later. The steel factory was a major source of jobs for residents of South Chicago. However, the mill began to shrink in the 1970s and eventually closed in 1992. Jobs were cut and the surrounding area became economically depressed. Today, the site is a recreational space that honors the area’s past while also meeting community needs. Repurposing the old factory has boosted property prices in the surrounding area.
The Long Island Power Station, Queens, NY
Built in the early 20th century, the Long Island Power Station provided power for the Long Island and New York City transportation networks. In the 1950s, different parties bought the power station’s buildings. By the early 2000s, much of the infrastructure was in disrepair. However, the buildings were in an excellent location, located on the edge of the Queens’ Historic District in the Hunters Point neighborhood. Developers decided to repurpose the power station into high-end condominiums, which provided a major boost to the surrounding area’s economy, significantly increasing property prices.
Using the IRS Section 170 Bargain Sale for a Community Renaissance
If you have a performing asset, an older industrial building or distressed property, the IRS Section 170 Bargain Sale may provide a means to stimulate the local economy’s growth. The Bargain Sale is an excellent way for a seller to give back to his or her community through helping a federally-recognized nonprofit. The Bargain Sale also allows the seller to receive cash at closing and receive the remainder of the property value as tax deductions for up to five additional years.
How it Works
The cash portion of the purchase consideration tends to significantly lower than the property price and/or valuation. This situation allows new owners a much-reduced basis. The redevelopment and repurposing buildings would otherwise be financially unfeasible to redevelop. It can be a win-win-win: Win for the Seller who receives significant value through cash and tax deduction, a win for the nonprofit who can use the proceeds from a subsequent sale to fund its mission, and a win for the community as the reduced basis allows for properties to be financially feasible for redevelopment and/or repurposing.
To learn more about the IRS Section 170 Bargain Sale and explore whether it may be a good option for you, be sure to visit Welfont.com for more information and resources.
The content found on this Welfont.com page is for educational purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal, financial, or tax advice. Please consult your attorney, accountant, tax or other adviser before acting on any information found here.
by Joseph Garnett | Apr 14, 2018 | blogging
Measuring and Evaluating a Local Content Marketing Plan
The content creation of an online local content marketing plan that attracts visitors and keeps customers’ attention and converts them into a sale all at the same time is definitely difficult to achieve!
Creating a great local content marketing plan that’s easy to use and evaluate is like going on a fun journey. Yes, this journey includes measuring and evaluating Local SEO results.
Developing a Local Content Marketing Plan
As the journey begins, an owner should consider developing a Local Content Marketing Plan, while listing and implementing steps. Finally, learning how to calculate, measure, and evaluate the success of the local content marketing plan.
First, let’s look at measuring the Success of Local Content Marketing
1. How to Determine If a Campaign is Successful
Measurement is key in understanding the results. Proper planning, allows the evaluation to be calculated at the end of the local content marketing initiative with aggregated data. Various metrics contribute to the data. Of course, you’ll then need to spend a bit of time determining what it means. On one hand, the analysis will be relatively straightforward, because the resulting data is compared against baselines and benchmarks identified earlier in the process. However, there’s a catch: you need to connect the results to your content.
2. Relating Customer Behavior to Content
Regardless of whether the results are strong or weak, it’s necessary to know if local content marketing efforts were the major influence or did something else. It becomes more difficult to measure if there is more time between posting content and evidence of results. The kind of business you are marketing and how closely the things are measured overlap and creates difficulty in its calculation. Determining how clicks, likes, and comments may relate to overall marketing goals when using the marketing of a specific piece of content?
If you want more in-store traffic and you achieve that, how will you determine that it’s a result of your measurements? Do more clicks translate into more in-store traffic?
If the goal is to get more sales, then the sales funnel stages could be significantly longer, and you could have several different marketing initiatives targeting them.
For example, the initial goal was to get them to come to an event at the office. They attended, went to the website, read an article, and downloaded an eBook – and now they are potentially in two different sales funnels. If there isn’t a CRM in place to track all the campaigns a prospect is in, it is highly recommended you consider it.
3. Gathering Metrics
The things measured are usually substituted for the things that you really want to achieve. As an example, if you want to boost in-store traffic, then measuring online engagement (clicks, likes, etc.) doesn’t really matter. Instead, ask yourself this: What are the indicators that the business is getting more in-store traffic? For example, if this is the goal, including a discount code in the online content may help. Count the number of in-store customers who use the code. The number of code users will give you an idea many customers came to the local business after seeing the content on the website or social media.
Having different measurement indicators for each piece of content may be another effective manner to calculate metrics. For example, a graphic designer wants to get clients for a website design business. Using a tool like Google Analytics, she can then track the numbers and demographics of people who read an article on her website. The designer will also know who clicked from perhaps Facebook or Twitter and then clicked through to her website to see her portfolio. To track these metrics, implement Google Analytics and set goals.
The graphic designer may follow the progress of a user who views the portfolio, completes a form, and then hires their service. It can also be determined if the user made these actions after viewing the portfolio. The metrics show which pieces of Facebook content were most effective in driving traffic to the site, and then refine the social media content going forward.
4. Adjusting Your Goals
Like the earlier-mentioned business owner who wanted to increase in-store traffic, you may reach the evaluation step and discover that your proxy measurements are incompatible with the goals. In some cases, the goal initially established is too big to be achieved in a single local content marketing campaign. In that case, you may want to consider revising that goal to be more in line with the things that can be measured.
So, what’s the bottom line? Goals, audience, content topics, channels, and measurement indicators are part of a circular planning process. Once strategically planned, it can be used repeatedly to cultivate new customers – and deepen the loyalty of existing ones.
Content marketing is the opposite of traditional marketing strategies. Content marketing should be implemented as a continuous process, with results interpreted as cumulative equity in the brand. It helps to continue creating valuable content based on the E-A-T concept of Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness. Google loves high-value content. So, the happier you make Google, the higher the content will rank in SERPs.
Success Starts with a Solid Foundation
Implementing solid foundations allow for successful tracking behavior and measuring success and conversions beyond a solid local content marketing plan. This foundation is part of the beginning of the process. It’s not the goal itself. It starts with the website, moves into Google Analytics set-up, goal tracking, and much more. Web Traffic Networks is here to help you get started from that solid foundation! Request a demo and learn more today!
by Joseph Garnett | Apr 14, 2018 | blogging
Donors can make an everlasting contribution to art by supporting the Legacy Society at the Dunedin Fine Art Center. These planned gifts preserve cultural values and make it possible for the art center to grow for generations to come. Since its inception, the Wheels on Wheels program continues to help sustain the artistic future of our community.
That’s why Nick Anastasakis and his family decided to build a lasting relationship with DFAC. Wheels on Wheels is now a staple in the art education community through the support of the Pougialis/Anastasakis Foundation for Art and the Pinellas Community Foundation.
What is Wheels on Wheels?
More than 2,500 school-age children have climbed aboard since the Wheels on Wheels bus launched in February 2016. In 30-45 minute sessions, they learn and practice basic pottery techniques, getting hands-on experience with new skills and tools.
The program serves up to 22 children at a time. Using a variety of self-hardening clay, students create pinch and coil pots and learn to practice throwing on a pottery wheel.
“They all walk away with something,” Still said. “It’s an experience and great exposure to the process.”
Tampa Bay Recognizes Wheels on Wheels
In February of 2018, the Wheels on Wheels program received recognition from for its enrichment of youths through art. Wheels on Wheels became a finalist in the “Be More Awards”, hosted by WEDU. Non-profit and not-for-profit organizations from 16 Florida counties participated in the awards competition. The judges placed Wheels on Wheels in the “Be More Enriched” and “Non-Profit of the Year” categories. The awards recognize organizations who work to make a difference and improve the lives of citizens in the Tampa Bay Area.
(Left to Right) Dunedin Fine Art Center’s Vice President Ken Hannon, Youth Education Director Todd Still, and President George Ann Bissett attended the ‘Be More Awards”.
Although Wheels on Wheels did not win in its nominated categories, Dunedin Fine Art Center’s youth education director Todd Still enjoys the honor and recognition from others seeing the value the program provides the community.
“It’s very rewarding to see the impact on so many different levels,” he said. “Being able to offer experiences they wouldn’t normally have.” “From start to finish, it’s kind of magical when the kids
get on the bus.”
Continuing a Mother’s Legacy
Nick, whose family’s legacy gift helps make those wheels go around, explains that youth education was of special importance to his late mother Helen Pouglialis Anastatakis.
“My mother was an educator, and she wanted to make sure that the money left behind would go toward children’s education, especially for very young children,” Nick said.
Nick studied interior design at the University of Alabama, and eventually took over his father’s business, Ember Sewing Machines.
“I’ve always been around art, that’s part of my education,” he said. “What’s scary is that in education today, in many places, they are weeding important things like art out of curriculums.” That’s why he finds the Wheels on Wheels program, in a word: “Fantastic.”
“Its a really great way of giving a touch of art to kids who can’t get elsewhere,” he said. “Mathematics and art are very well blended, so it also helps with other areas of education.”
Learn How You Can Give
A Legacy Society donation shares the gift of art and makes the Dunedin Fine Art Center better for future generations. For more information on Legacy Donations, please click here or email Linda@dfac.org.
