B2B Stories

Expanding networks – the gift that keeps on giving

By the time you read this, there will be only four more shopping days until Christmas, only six days left in Hanukkah, and 10 days until the last day, the giving day, of Kwanzaa. Some of you may be considering giving a gift to someone in your business circle. However, there are often concerns about the appropriateness of giving a material gift to your boss, subordinate, colleague, or people you work with in other companies such as vendors/suppliers or distributors. In this season of giving and gratitude, why not give

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B2B Stories

Simon Says: Future trends: Transportation, healthcare support jobs to grow in next decade

In my annual economic forecast presentation a couple of weeks ago, I looked forward to 2023, which I covered in this column last week. I also took a longer timeline through 2031 to see what our economy would look like using Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) occupational projections. There are 22 major occupational groups tracked by the BLS and the charts below show the changes in the top 12 major groups that account for 85 percent of jobs locally. There are several things of interest. First, the top 12 major

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Consumer Stories

Local businesses sponsor families at Christmas airport event

On Saturday, Santa Claus came a little earlier than usual for many local children from underprivileged families, thanks to help from the CSRA business community. The Augusta Regional Airport and Richmond County Marshal’s Office hosted the fifth annual Santa’s Fly-In to provide toys for 136 kids from 40 families. “We partner with Augusta Partnership for Children, Inc. and work with local businesses and individuals,” said the airport’s Assistant Director of Marketing and Public Relations, Lauren Smith. “This is our biggest year yet, and we hope to continue growing.” Business sponsors

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B2B Stories

Holidays bring out online scammers, teens increasingly vulnerable

CSRA residents, like millions of Americans, enjoy the ease of online shopping. But that trend also brings out criminals trying to capitalize on that appeal by running scams and, surprisingly, the fastest growing victim group is teenagers. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Department (SLED) said the end of the year is especially rife with scams and fraud. According to Social Catfish, in the past five years, the number of teenage victims of scams has increased by 1,125 percent and in 2021 resulted in a loss of $101.4 million. Those over

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Digital Marketing

Free Access: The New Year: Time to tidy up your online presence

First off, Merry Christmas CSRA! 2022 is just about to end, and it is time to make sure your online presence is ready for 2023. How do you do that, you ask? We have got you covered! Go to https://grouprb.com/get-your-free-online-audit-report/ and run a free assessment of your online presence. You will get a report back that gives you a feel for how your business is performing in seven categories: listings, reviews, social media, website usability, e-commerce, online advertising, and SEO (search engine optimization). Below is a sample summary. Each of

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Consumer Stories

Augusta airport shares holiday travel tips

If you’re planning to fly the friendly skies this week, and you’re bringing Christmas gifts with you, you may want to wait until you arrive at your destination to wrap them, according to Lauren Smith. ABD spoke with Smith, Augusta Regional Airport’s assistant director of marketing and public relations, about travel tips for this holiday season. She said wrapped gifts can cause problems during screening by the Transportation Security Administration. “They suggest you don’t wrap them, but if you do, just be aware that you may have to unwrap them,”

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Support Local

Free Access: Christ Community Health marks 15 years, prepares to open children’s clinic

“If it weren’t for Christ Community, I don’t know what I’d do…” This is a comment voiced by many of the patients at Christ Community Health Services Augusta. Christ Community is a Christ-based non-profit healthcare ministry that celebrated its 15th birthday in November. “Our mission is to proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and to demonstrate His love by providing affordable, quality healthcare to the underserved,” said CEO, Don Branum. “Our patients come from more than 10 counties around Augusta. Many of them don’t have health insurance or have limited insurance.”

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B2B Stories

Local paint company owner launches CSRA party rental business

Michael Schiebel already owns a local painting company, but he’s excited to announce he’s bouncing into a second business in the party rental industry. Schiebel, owner of A Cut Above Painting Co. in Evans, is launching A Jump Above Party Rentals. The new business will rent out various items, such as bounce houses, cotton candy machines, tables, and chairs, for birthday parties, weddings, and other events. Prior to going into business for himself, he worked for Rainbow Play Systems. “I enjoyed working with families with kids in that industry,” Schiebel

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Consumer Stories

Local business owner sees decline in donations for troops

This year, Operation Handwarmer collected fewer items than it did in previous years, but Burt Sappenfield is still pleased with the community support the cause received. Sappenfield, the owner of Majestic Floor Care, LLC in Evans, said the charity collected about 6,000 items, which will be sent to U.S. troops stationed overseas. “I delivered the items to Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, and the chaplains will be distributing those items to the troops overseas,” Sappenfield said. He said he expected to receive fewer items this year and blames much of

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