I Love the Smell of Steer Manure!

One great thing about Southern California is the weather. It's sunny most of the time and we don't get intense storms like many parts of the country do.

I'm kind of a gardening nut, always planting flowers and I like to keep my grass healthy. Each year at this time, we put Winter Rye on our lawn. It's a simple thing to put down the seed with many bags of steer manure. Some find the manure smell disgusting, but being a bit odd, I kind of like it. I'm not sure why, but part of it is I know it helps the lawn stay healthy.

In the spring, I put on weed and feed on to kill of the weeds and fertilize the grass, making it stronger in the hot, dry months of summer. I liken my gardening skills to growing a strong, healthy business. Nurturing fruits, vegetables, and flowers is rewarding for me as is having a thriving business.

The landscape of the promotional products industry is changing. To have a fruitful business these days you need to be aware of what's happening so you can fertilize your business for growth and be proactive about killing the weeds that threaten it.

What are these weeds that are choking our business growth and how can we fertilize where we need to? Here are a three emerging trends, or "weeds", that are worth noting along with suggestions as to how you can fertilize them and grow your business. You may not love the smell of steer manure like I do, but I'm pretty sure you love the green as you build a successful business!

The Economy
It's no secret that things aren't what they used to be. The experts say the recession is over, but from where I sit in California, things don't look so rosy. Clients I've worked with for years are either out of business, or just aren't buying as much. However, I still think the weather is great for growing a healthy business; we just need to work a bit smarter.