Florida Trend | Florida's Business Authority

Monday's Afternoon Update

Florida business owners disagree about minimum wage hike

President Obama's proposal to gradually raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour is raising a few eyebrows among Florida employers. However, many say they already pay more than $9 an hour to hire and retain good workers, so it's no big deal. More at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.


Sales and Marketing Advice for Florida business
Tips to improve your sales "call-to-action"

Having a compelling call-to-action is critical for online sales, email, and print. And for good reason -- when there isn’t a human speaking with a prospect in real time, there needs to be an effective way to convert visitors into a lead or direct sale. Read Ron Stein's full column.


Jobs agency buses put training on wheels

Business Profile

PrimeTime Amusements

prime time amusements
As a 19-year-old UCF student in 1992 interested in making some money, David Goldfarb hit on the idea of supplying a sub shop with coin-operated pool tables, a juke box and arcade game and splitting the revenue with the shop. The model worked. Now based in Fort Lauderdale, his PrimeTime Amusements has $5 million in annual revenue and 12 full-time employees.

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» PrimeTime Amusements

If you think public schools are crowded, check out the classroom-on-wheels run by Workforce Central Florida. On a recent Friday, about a half a dozen students squeezed into the 38-foot converted RV – one of two now in use – to learn the ins and outs of Microsoft Excel. More at the Orlando Sentinel.


Job hunting at work? Most workers do.

A majority of workers say they often look at online job boards at work, according to a new survey by Right Management, an outplacement firm that has its Florida office in Fort Lauderdale. According to survey of 400 U.S. and Canadian workers, 74 percent explore job sites often or at least occasionally during the work day. More at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.


Grassroots push to revamp immigration grows in Florida

Belle Glade farmer Rick Roth is preparing to do some planting, although he’s not speaking about seeds. Instead, he will be sowing ideas in the minds of Florida congressmen. Roth, owner of Roth Farms, is planning trips to Washington, D.C. in the months ahead with the Florida Farm Bureau and the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association, to convince congressmen that Florida needs an overhaul of immigration law. More at the Palm Beach Post.

Talent Search
Talent Shopping Network

talent searchThirty years ago, Will Quinones was an aspiring dancer, traveling from one audition to another. The experience, he says, was both costly and inconvenient and later inspired him to create the Talent Shopping Network, which enables performers and agents to conduct auditions online. The performers — so far more than 2,200 have signed up — pay a fee starting at $3.99 a month to post their auditions on the site, where entertainment industry professionals, who also must subscribe, can watch them sing, dance or act. Read the full story here and visit Talent Shopping Network.