Support for Outdated Software Products/Compliance w/Cardholder Information Security Programs

– William Deery, VP of Operations, J.D. Associates

We’d like to inform you today of older software product versions which are no longer supported by their developers and subsequently cannot be supported by J.D. Associates. (A hard copy of this announcement was mailed in July.) You may or may not be currently using these versions. [Get the full story]

Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) Announcement

– J.D. Associates Support Department

Are your register receipts in compliance with the law? Do you know the law? If not, it could cost you lots of money and your professional reputation. You can't afford to lose either. J.D. Associates can help you get compliant with the law. Let’s start with the law: Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, or FACTA, makes it illegal for a retailer to electronically print more than the last 5 digits, or a credit/debit card number in full, on the receipt. It’s also against the law to print the card’s expiration date on the receipt; it must be deleted. The account information must be shortened, or truncated. [Get the full story]

Time to Recruit the Elves: Hiring Temps For the Holidays

– Don Capman, President, J.D. Associates

The other day while reading my NRF newsletter, I came across a quote worth sharing that was made by Arthur Glaskow, author and humorist: “One of the tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency.” Of course we can’t anticipate everything but there are things in the retail arena that are clearly predictable yet often ignored until it’s too late to do anything about them. Unfortunately, bad or inadequate planning can be very costly. So, I’ll ask you a question: Have you started planning your temporary staffing for the upcoming holidays yet? If the answer is “yes”, congratulations, but I fear you might be in the minority. If your answer is “no”, now is the time to start the process. Considering that most retailers make 80% of their annual sales between the end of November and the beginning of January, poor staffing can result in substantial losses. [Get the full story]

Guerrilla Marketing Articles: Is Your USP Truly Unique?

– Debra Kahn Schofield

Of all the acronyms that are tossed around in business, the USP may be the most important and least attended to. Your USP or Unique Selling Proposition is what sets you apart from your competitors and convinces people to patronize your company. A USP condenses the objective of your positioning strategy into a brief, catchy phrase. When creating your USP, use short punchy action words to tells the story of your business. Think “Just Do It,” “Got Milk,”and “Because you’re worth it.”[Get the full story]