Daily News

5STORIES FOR MARCH 11, 2010: 1. Jewelry industry figures make Forbes' billionaire list. 2. Bidz.com revenues plunge in Q4 2009. 3. In MA, robber grabs $40,000 in loose diamonds from salesperson's hand, flees. 4. With record unemployment, increased payroll taxes are hitting small businesses hard. 5. Neiman Marcus sees luxury shoppers making a comeback.

TODAY'S "WORK SMART" TIP: Use an expensive-looking repair pricebook ...
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TODAY'S TO-DO: Put together a selection of fun green items — earrings, brooches, cocktail rings — and highlight them on your website under a St. Patrick’s Day Specials banner.

INSPIRE ME TODAY: Dan Heath on writing a company mission statement that doesn't suck.

FEEDBACK PROJECTS: Take a few minutes to tell us your passion.  Pick your favorite silver designs.

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5STORIES FOR MARCH 10, 2010: 1. Canada's first diamond bourse will be fully operational by end of March. 2. Optimism continues to fall for small business owners. 3. Jewelry Insider blogs the Oscar after-parties. 4. Start brainstorming: this new paint can turn any wall into a whiteboard. 5. Find TV soundtrack music on the cheap.

TODAY'S "WORK SMART" TIP: Sleep with a notepad next to your bed ...
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TODAY'S TO-DO: Send a St. Patrick’s Day promotional e-mail. Invite customers to ferret out that “wee pot of gold” in the bottom of their jewelry case and exchange it for cash.

INSPIRE ME TODAY: Why grow? and other wisdom from 37Signals' Jason Fried.

Live chat on INSTOREMAG.COM. Log in and check the bottom of your browser window.

FEEDBACK PROJECTS: Take a few minutes to tell us your passion.  Pick your favorite silver designs.

5STORIES FOR MARCH 9, 2010: 1. More Oscar jewelry coverage and more and more and more. 2. Positive indicator: NASDAQ at 18-month high. 3. Police seize jewelry from Milwaukee, WI store that bought jewelry without following identification procedure. 4. Dearborn Jewelers set to celebrate 60th anniversary. 5. WSJ: Huge coupon-ing communities forming on Internet.

TODAY'S "WORK SMART" TIP: Hire temps who share similarities with your customer base ...
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TODAY'S TO-DO: It’s time for your twice-yearly employee reviews. You’ll do them again in September. (Remember the sandwich technique!)

INSPIRE ME TODAY: "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." — Thomas Edison

FEEDBACK PROJECTS: Read what your fellow jewelers love to do most and take a few minutes to tell us your passion.  Pick your favorite silver designs. Poll: Sex?

5STORIES FOR MARCH 8, 2010: 1. Beth Bernstein blogs the Oscars, where bling is out. Additional Oscar coverage here and here. 2. Three top industry groups agree on system for disclosing colored gemstone treatments. 3. Could Gossip Girl's Fleur de Lis necklace become the new "horseshoe pendant"? 4. GIA launches virtual colored gemstone museum. 5. New wedding-focused concept to be launched by Urban Outfitters

TODAY'S "WORK SMART" TIP: Hire temps who share similarities with your customer base ...
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TODAY'S TO-DO: It's "Make a Referral Week". Be sure to recommend a customer, friend or some other acquaintance to use the services of another small business. And hopefully they'll do the same for you. Think of it as a referral-led stimulus package.

INSPIRE ME TODAY: Scott Ginsberg on the importance of the word "next".

FEEDBACK PROJECT: We're now approaching 20 responses for our passions assignment. Read what your fellow jewelers love to do most and take a few minutes to tell us your passion.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Pick your favorite silver designs. Poll: Sex?

5STORIES FOR MARCH 5, 2010: 1. Zale to raise cash by selling leases on 12 NYC stores. 2. Diamonds.net: Avi Kravitz writes an open letter to new Kimberley Process monitor for Zimbabwe. 3. Fortune names "world's most admired companies". 4. PGI to offer free sales training in New York city March 9-12. 5. Antique jewelry and watch changes Las Vegas location, moves to MGM June 3-6.

FEEDBACK PROJECT: We're now approaching 20 responses for our passions assignment. Read what your fellow jewelers love to do most and take a few minutes to tell us your passion.

TODAY'S "WORK SMART" TIP: Offer a personal shopping service ...
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TODAY'S TO-DO: Saturday sales meeting focus: "Proving Diamonds Are Inexpensive". Spiff for the weekend: “Pass the $50”. The first person to make a sale over a certain dollar amount gets a $50 bill. When another sales person tops that sale, they get the $50. Who ever makes the last large sale at the close of the business day keeps the $50.

INSPIRE ME TODAY: How smart phones are changing business travel.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Pick your favorite silver designs. Poll: Sex?

5STORIES FOR MARCH 4, 2010: 1. Magazine news: WWD/JCK plan scrapped, JCK remains under management of Reed Exhibitions. 2. IDEX: Polished diamond prices up significantly in February, writes Ken Gassman. 3. "Zip-tie bandits" caught in the act of robbing jewelry store in Buffalo, police report. 4. Ivanka Trump holds penthouse party to celebrate new jewelry line. 5. Lawsuit alleges Yelp uses fake negative reviews to extort advertising contracts from business owners.

TODAY'S "WORK SMART" TIP: Don't over-complicate your sales pitch. Limit yourself to three main points ...
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FEEDBACK PROJECT: We've got a bunch of fun responses to our "Passions" assignment. Won't you tell us your passion?

TODAY'S TO-DO: Start planning your open to buy for the last half of the year. The SMART Jewelry Show will be held in Chicago from April 24-26, JCK Vegas from June 4-7 and the JA New York Summer Show from July 25-28.

INSPIRE ME TODAY: Dan Heath on Voodoo Doughnut and standing out in crowded markets. (Check out this Voodoo Doughnut video, too. Customer on one of the unique donut varieties: "Only late Elvis on medication would eat this".)

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Pick your favorite silver designs. Poll: Sex?

5STORIES FOR MARCH 3, 2010: 1. "Bachelor" Jake chooses Vienna ... and Neil Lane princess-cut. 2. IDEX: Margins are being squeezed throughout the supply chain as price of jewelry inflates, writes Ken Gassman. 3. Consumer spending up for fourth straight month. 4. More JA/NY: Beth Bernstein offers her take on show trends. 5. "Real Housewife" Ramona Singer debuts jewelry collection on HSN.

FEEDBACK PROJECT: We've got a bunch of fun responses to our "Passions" assignment. Won't you tell us your passion?

INSPIRE ME TODAY: Flashback 2003: INSTORE's "second annual promotions feature" has a bunch of good ideas to help you get attention.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Pick your favorite silver designs. Sex in the store? Hire a TV star?

5STORIES FOR MARCH 2, 2010: 1. Attendance up at JA/NY ... Claire Baiz notes major design trends from the show. 2. In low-crime Mass. town, two jewelry stores robbed a week apart. 3. Diana Jarret tells the story behind Tanzania's fast-rising Winza rubies. 4. Zimbabwe mines minister threatens to pull out of KP. 5. Washington jewelers question Marion Barry's "gift".

Vote: Pick your favorite silver designs.
More interactive: Sex in the store? Hire a TV star?

TODAY'S "WORK SMART" TIP: Go for the big sale. Suggest diamonds to birthday-gift buyers ...
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TODAY'S TO-DO: Planning will be a recurring theme this month. Start by setting times to meet with your advisers — your lawyer, accountant, banker, parents and any consultants. Review the state of the company and how it’s placed to benefit from the economic recovery.

INSPIRE ME TODAY: An easy-to-use and wonderfully friendly "About Us" page. For a pretty cool piece of software (Mac-only, though).

5STORIES FOR MARCH 1, 2010: 1. 507-carat diamond scores highest price ever for a rough diamond — $35 million. 2. A family is divided as one of Portland's two Carl Greve stores suddenly closes. 3. WSJ: What new credit card (CARD) act means for small businesses. 4. After 12 day engagement, "serial disengager" won't return $58,000 ring. 5. Sleeping on the job? That's smart!

Vote: Pick your favorite silver designs.
More interactive: Sex in the store? Hire a TV star?

TODAY'S "WORK SMART" TIP: Before you buy an item, think of the retail price at which you will sell it ...
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TODAY'S TO-DO: Review February's performance. Did you hit your targets? If not, it's time to bear down and work harder. Monthly spiff: Start a contest for March with point system.

INSPIRE ME TODAY: Sure, they're as tacky as a velour painting of a herd of galloping horses ... but they work. It's the Infomercial Hall of Fame.

5STORIES FOR FEBRUARY 26, 2010: 1. IDEX: Online retailing is a completely different business from store retailing, writes Ken Gassman. 2. Economic outlook: Strong growth in Q4 will slow through 2010. 3. Cartier closing accounts with potentially 120 to 140 retailers. 4. Charles and Colvard 2009 sales plummet. 5. Minnesota store robbed by thieves who put their coats on counters to hide theft.

Vote on your favorite silver design for our April issue.

If you could hire any TV character, who would you pick?

TODAY'S "WORK SMART" TIP: Polish up a repair order in front of the customer before you begin the job ...
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TODAY'S TO-DO: Saturday sales meeting — aquamarine (March's birthstone). Saturday spiff: the gumball spiff.

INSPIRE ME TODAY: Does your business pass the pronoun test?

WHAT DO YOU THINK?: Sex in the store? Michael Myers wants suggestions on how to handle his store-closing sale. Trace Shelton asks whether the Kimberley Process is working.