Broward Directory Blog

The First public hearing for high schools is scheduled on March 13, 2008 at Plantation High School
6901 Northwest 16th Street Plantation at 5:30 p.m.

If you are concerned over the possible boundary changes, then it is you civic duty to be there and voice your concerns or support for the future changes.

http://www.broward.k12.fl.us/schoolboundaries/WorkshopVFeb5/TableContents.htm

By Lee Smith – a South Florida Search Engine Marketing Manager

Web Site Marketing is a combination of techniques used to get your web site found and displayed to as many potential customers as possible. The primary key factor for getting your web site found is "CONTENT". The success of being found is based on how well you describe your services or products on your web site. Adding more content for new products and services helps the search engines locate key information as well as allow your customers to see the latest news about your company.

• Think about what your web site says: Does your web site represent your current business?
• Does your web site tell your customers what you accurately do?
• Does your web site display your current contact information?
• What is the outcome you really want visitors to do when they visit your web site?
• What action do you want visitors to take once they read your web site?
• Do your web pages tell the who, what, where, why and when about a particular issue?

More thoughts:

• Do you have any new updates for your web site?
• Do you want to change the look of your web site – giving it fresh new look?
• Did you add a new product or service in the past 6 months?
• Did you eliminate any products or services in the past 6 months?
• Did anything news worthy occur to your company that you would like everyone to know?
• Did you write an article or paper about a something you feel would help your company?
• Have you been recognized for outstanding work or activity?
• Do you want to increase your traffic? Convert it into sales inquiries, products sold, or new leads?

How many people are visiting your site daily? Is it 10, 50, 200, 500, 1000 or more visitors per day? Is it worth adding that new information? You bet it does! This is marketing that never stops!

I would bet you want to offer your visitors the latest news about your company, prices, products and services. Your web site is one of your most precious marketing tools. It works 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Adding new content to your web site on a regular basis (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly) is the single most effective way to keep your web site fresh, the search engines happy and people coming back.

Don't let your web site collect dust. It is the single most important marketing tool you possess and it's working when you are not!

Why focus on Web Site Marketing?

• Web site marketing is about telling your story and keeping your story up to date.
• Writing well thought out content – content is the first crucial hurdle.
• Submit your web site to directories and search engines. This is an ongoing process.
• Using your web site on business cards, stationary, e-mail correspondence, flyers, newspaper ads, t-shirts, articles, or on anything that displays your business name.
• Add web pages about new or existing products and services.
• Are your web pages HTML compliant for the search engine spiders? Poorly written code will prevent the search engines from finding the content of your web pages.
• Ask for testimonials from happy clients and publish them on the web.
• Have clients write product or service reviews – this helps you correct problems or it allows the clients to boast about their experience with your company
• Start a blog and talk about your business by adding industry news, successful sales, testimonials, or discuss hot topics.
• If the web site is new, start a pay per click campaign to jump start the traffic and measure the ROI so you don't get yourself into debt over your marketing efforts.
• Collect e-mails from your customers and start a newsletter or send out a monthly correspondence. E-mail campaigns can be very successful in keeping your brand and identity in front of your clients. This also helps your clients remember to refer your company to others
• Review your log files to see what you are being found for and where you are getting your traffic from.

Web site marketing can be very successful, it all depends on your effort.

Lee Smith
Search Engine Marketing Expert
Phone: (954) 423-2785
Website: http://www.smittysholdings.com

By Lee Smith

I have been around in the business world for a very long time. One of my key observations in conducting business relationships is how we communicate with our customers. Keeping the lines of communication open with the customer is crucial in today's world. The customer will always think of you first if you keep yourself in their mind.

• Call your customers on a periodic basis
• Treat people the way you want to be treated.
• Mail your customers a card of useful information, a discount or holiday greetings.
• Send a thank you note for any business they refer or created for you.
• If your customers are having a business function or some other activity, ask how you can help and if you are invited, be sure to show up.
• If you know someone that may need their services or products, refer them.
• For those special clients or customers, take them to lunch. Treat them like part of the family.

Have you ever wondered how much it costs to find new clients? Take some time to figure out how much you spend on advertising, your time and money developing the ads, your time calling on new prospects, meeting them and presenting your products or services, weeding out none responsive prospects, the actual sale and delivery of products or services.

If you know there is going to be a problem for a client or customer like a product not being shipped, a scheduling issue, or anything that may interfere with your clients' time or delivery, call them first! Be truthful and explain the situation and how it can be handled. Always call the customer first with the problem, before the customer finds out and calls you.

I have found that people are judged more on how they handle a problem or situation than how they handle the normal everyday business deal or sale. Always try to find that Win-Win resolution so everyone walks away with a feeling of accomplishment.

Communication is extremely important in our everyday lives. Those of us whom strive to make the effort to communicate are often rewarded.

SCHOOL BOARD BOUNDARIES WORKSHOP V
February 13, 2008

TABLE OF CONTENTS

During the February 13th School Board Boundary Workshop V,Board directive was to bring staff boundary scenario 4.1S and community boundary scenario 1.1C to the first public hearing for high schools scheduled on March 13, 2008 at Plantation High School 6901 Northwest 16th Street Plantation at 5:30 p.m.

http://www.broward.k12.fl.us/schoolboundaries/WorkshopVFeb5/TableContents.htm

19.1C has been taken off the list, however it is important to attend the meeting to be sure it is not placed back on. Attend the meeting and  Voice your Opinion.

To: schoolboardmembers@browardschools.com;
Subject: School Board Boundaries 19.1
Date: Sun, 10 Feb 2008 16:28:22 -0800

Dear Members: It is with extreme concern that I find myself writing this letter regarding school boundaries for the upcoming 08/09 school year. 
 
I currently have a 7th grade daughter enrolled at Indian Ridge Middle School and a 4th grade son attending Silver ridge Elementary School.  My family resides East of Nob Hill Road and West of University Drive on the South side of I-595.  While my children are currently zoned to attend Western High School, the proposed boundary changes will send them to South Plantation High School.
Both my children have had the auspicious privilege of attending "A" rated schools.  They have excelled at these schools and for reasons I am sure you can all understand.  They have been provided the utmost education all thanks to wonderful teachers and administration.  The schools they have attended have all followed the same paths; that is, they know what is expected in the next schools they feed into and are completely in sync with one another.  In fact, they have been preparing the students based on the zones they live in and that pattern of education clearly works as evidenced by their "A" ratings.  To remove our students from an "A" rated school to a "C" rated school is simply unfair.
 
Additionally, to remove a select amount of students proposed in scenario 19.1 (East of Nob Hill), will remove our children from attending schools that they have attended with their friends since the beginning of their education.  Our children should not be removed from everything they have grown accustomed to as it will not have a positive impact on their education. 
 
Furthermore, the rezoning of our boundaries will also have a negative impact on the market value of our homes which, in light of the housing economy as it stands right now, will only make matters worse.  Weston continued to grow, authorizing permits for new residential developments without caring about the impact on the Broward School System.  Weston obviously new that this problem would come to fruition eventually.  Why should our neighborhoods that have been here for more than 12-15 years, take the brunt and be forced out of our zone.
 
While we realize that there is a need to accommodate other zones, the impact on our zone is far too detrimental to rezone our neighborhood.  Our children deserve the education that they have grown accustomed to and they should not be negatively impacted as they definitely would be should scenario 19.1 be approved.   To send our children twice as far away from our homes is not what was intended when we chose our residence.  We desperately need another alternative, and respectfully request that you look at other avenues other than approving scenario 19.1.  Our children's' education and futures demand it.
 
Thank you for your time.
 
Sincerely,
Brian and Sherry

To find which School Board Member manages which school districts (or Schools), use the link below:

http://www.browardschools.com/schoolboard/districts.htm 

These School Board Members were voted to their offices by the residents of our county.

For the schools in Davie – You may want to contact Board Member – Phyllis C. Hope. Phyllis Hope manages DISTRICT 6 which includes:

Elementary Schools:
——————-
Banyan
Country Isles
Eagle Point
Embassy Creek
Everglades
Flamingo
Fox Trail
Gator Run
Griffin
Horizon
Indian Trace
Manatee Bay
Nob Hill
Sandpiper
Sawgrass
Silver Ridge
Village
Welleby

Middle Schools:
——————
Bair
Falcon Cove
Indian Ridge
Tequesta Trace
Westpine

High Schools:
—————
Cypress Bay
Piper
Western

Charter Schools:
—————–
Chancellor Charter School at Weston
Sunrise Community Elementary

This is a link to the Map of the districts from the Broward School Board:

Map of the Districts 

The School Board Contact Info:

Broward County Public Schools
600 SE Third Ave. Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 USA
Phone: (754) 321-0000

The easiest (greenest) way to get a message to the School Board Members and voice your opinions is to e-mail them.

The e-mail addresses for the Broward School Board Members: 

 Or if you like you can e-mail them all at one time:

schoolboard@browardschools.com 

 You can also contact James F. Notter – Superintendent of Schools

E-mail address: supt_notter@browardschools.com 

http://www.browardschools.com/superintendent/

Take time today to e-mail the Members of the School Board and let your voice be heard.

The School Board Boundaries:

There are about 20 Proposals for the change of school boundaries to accommodate the Weston overcrowding:
http://www.broward.k12.fl.us/schoolboundaries/

The list of possibilities:
http://www.broward.k12.fl.us/schoolboundaries/0809BoundaryProcess/CommunityScenarios.htm

Let the Broward School Board hear your opinion:
E-mail addresses of the School Board:
http://www.browardschools.com/schoolboard/

The FCAT scores for the  Broward Schools:

http://www.browardschools.com/schools/fcat/high.htm 

It's terrible to have your child bused from a "B" rated School to a "C" rated School.

Well, it looks like the School Board's blackmail tactics are moving forward to bus kids from Davie to Plantation to ease the over crowding of the Weston Schools. 

http://www.broward.k12.fl.us/schoolboundaries