Healthy Options Come to the Fort

by LARA MILLICAN

Arthur Green (pictured) and Cody Barnes are the people behind The Meal Prep Pros. Early this year Cody had the idea to start a business whose goal is to offer healthy foods to people at an affordable price. With the help of Arthur to create the menu items, they started TMPP delivery services.

By mid-May they had a brick and mortar location in the old Skinny's White Spot Cafe on Rogers Avenue and started offering the option of dining-in. The Meal Prep Pros wanted to bring something new to the area. Their menu offers healthy options, like chicken stuffed zucchini, and quinoa stuffed peppers, which are their best sellers.  They also serve staple comfort food, like burgers. There are already a lot of low-sodium, gluten-free and vegan options on the menu, with more in the making!

Arthur and Cody keep their ingredients as organic and locally grown as possible by using vendors with farm to table beef, chicken and produce. They also go to the Fort Smith Farmer's Market during the season where local produce and meat are plentiful. It wasn't hard for them to find a good vendor as Northwest Arkansas is setting the pace for healthier eating, forcing Fort Smith suppliers to keep up with demand. 

While they service a solid number of dine-in patrons, 65-70% of their business is delivery to Fort Smith and Roland, they also deliver to Van Buren. Some customers will order a larger amount of food on Monday night to reheat throughout the week. Give The Meal Prep Pros a try today!

A Day at the Farmers Market

by DUSAN STOJANOVIC

For thousands of years farming has been one of the most important, life-preserving, activities. Since Ancient Egypt, farming has been based around large, often-flooding rivers which provided fertile soil for the local community. Thousands of years later, we see the same models used for farming all over the world.

Fort Smith is a great example of this. The area is full of farmers and ranchers that take advantage of the fertile grounds. Located on the outskirts of the Arkansas River, Fort Smith’s Farmers Market on Garrison Avenue is attended by many of these local farmers. There you can find fruits and vegetables, grass fed beef, homemade baked goods, and everything in between, including craftsmen.

The Fort Smith Farmers Market is not the biggest one you’ll see, but it sure has a soul. These farmers have been coming here for years and will continue coming back as long as the market is there. Loyal customers from the community visit between 7am and noon on Tuesdays and Saturdays to come buy fresh, homegrown food from the trustworthy farmers of the River Valley.

Google Announces Major Changes to Adwords

by STEPHANIE NUGENT

Stephanie Nugent is the President of CyberSpyder Marketing Service, a local web design and internet marketing firm.  In 2000, she had a dream: to use her talents to help small and medium-sized businesses claim their place on the world wide web.  She and her team work hard to do just that for over 200 local clients.

Last week, Google announced major changes to Adwords.  These are not tweaks, but a fundamental change of direction. They have shifted their thinking, and mobile first is the focus.  Previously, desktop was the focus, with configuration changes available to account for mobile. This is an exciting change that will allow advertisers to interact with their audience in a more timely manner.

This is big! One of the changes announced is a new opportunity for local businesses to advertise on Google.com and Google Maps. Now, if you are a local advertisers using location extensions, you get more prominent exposure, including browsing inventory, right on Google maps and google.com when people search for specific products or services.  

You can watch the full video (one hour) here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW1LS94wLJw

If you build it, will they come?

by ROYCE FITZGERALD

With over 30 years of experience in the advertising and design industry, Fitzgerald currently owns and operates Four Leaf Creative, Inc. (FLC) in Fort Smith, AR. Since 2006 FLC has been serving a wide variety of clients locally and nationally.

Unfortunately we’ve all witnessed the downfall of one business or another. Maybe it was your own, maybe someone else’s. Either way it’s difficult to watch. Even if not directly involved each of us inwardly cheer for those start-ups. We share in other people’s success vicariously because it gives us hope.

We all know there are no guarantees but many times entrepreneurs put themselves at a disadvantage from the start by believing that success will find them just because their doors are open for business. That classic line from the movie The Field of Dreams, “If we build it, they will come”, rarely works in reality.

The reasons for business failure are many, but not promoting shouldn’t be one of them. When starting a new business or service agency always remember to budget for promotional efforts. You’ve worked too hard to reach the batters box so make sure that you don’t take a fastball to the head without your helmet. It’s one thing to strike out and quite another to receive a devastating blow because of unpreparedness.


Word of mouth promotion is fine but the results may take longer than your pockets are deep, so seriously consider your marketing strategy and budget accordingly in advance. Promote your field of dreams, we all want you to succeed!

Putting the Muscle into the Muscle Car

D & D Specialty Cars started in Denver back in 1978. To be closer to family, Dale and Stacy Johns moved the operation to Van Buren in 1985.

“We’ve designed and built award-winning cars,” said Stacy. “And we do some collision work on high-end cars.”

So, when Aunt Bessie slams into a tree with her 1959 Jaguar XK150, take her prized possession to D & D Specialty Cars. When these people are finished, the Jag will look and run better than when it was new.

“Many cars are brought to us by family members,” Stacy added. They want to restore an older car to the way they remember it looked years ago. Currently undergoing restoration here is a 1948 Cadillac.

“Sometimes, people want the original look, but they want power and efficiency (under the hood),” she said. They come to D & D because it is known far and wide for custom building and quality fabrication.

“We go to shows all over the country,” Stacy added. Scottsdale and Tulsa are coming up, followed by a full schedule across the United States.

They concentrate on restorations of cars dating from 1929 to 1976. Corvettes, Mustangs, muscle cars and others can be seen on the website.

Parts for older vehicles can present a problem. It depends on the part, she explained. Some are found in salvage yards or businesses that stock old parts or they might be fabricated and remanufactured.

Vehicles are the mainstay here. But D & D also has built custom bikes.

For more information, call 479 474-1114 or visit DDspecialtyCars.com. It is located at 1026 E. Uniontown St., Van Buren. Hours are 7 to 4, Monday to Friday.

#XQAmerica: Future School #RethinksHighschool

        Fort Smith Future School has students, parents and business owners excited and engaged as our community rethinks high school. It's a concept that has created a sizable media stir. A high school designed by students...for students? What does that look like? 

      It begins with community participation - from students, parents, neighbors and business people. When you go to one of the Thursday night Create-a-thon meetings, you'll see a community of adults and students enthusiastically engaged in designing a school that provides students with an opportunity to learn in an environment that fosters real learning.         

       Future School doesn't look like my high school...and probably not yours. It takes

shape as students identify interests, as parents cut the apron strings, as educators listen, and as business owners become participants. It is no secret that today's students have different interests, new technologies at their disposal, and actively seek new learning experiences. And now, hi-tech business leaders are opening the checkbook to invest in tomorrow's young people as we #rethinkhighschool.

       America's educational system has not undergone a major transformation in nigh 100 years. Yet, our society has changed at an incredible speed. Recognizing the need for educational reform, Lauren Powell Jobs, widow of Apples Steve Jobs has committed $50,000,000 to seed the XQ Super School Project. Our very own Ft. Smith Future School is in the running to win $10,000,000 (yes, million) to seed the city's first, free public charter school. 

     So, how does a school go about winning one of the 5 awards that will be announced come August 2016? First applicants have to design their school to meet government standards and legal requirements. After that...the sky is the limit. 

     Ft. Smith Future School students are teaming with parents, educators and business leaders to define what their school looks like, the programs offered,and how they present these ideas. Students then go through a process to discover for themselves how they can accomplish their goals. What resources are required (people, money, money, equipment, etc); and what are the obstacles that will need to be overcome.

     One might rightfully ask, "How is this process working out?" Well, if you want to experience the project first hand, message Trish Flanagan on FaceBook and ask to be included in event reminders. If you're not quite ready to get involved, check out this video and share this story with others. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1warx9rWPA

     Together, we can #rethinkhighschool and help our Ft. Smith win a $10,000,000 educational award! 





     

XQ Kick Off at Fort Smith Future School

   Fort Smith Future School has students, parents and business owners excited and engaged as our community rethinks high school. It's a concept that has created a sizable media stir. A high school designed by students...for students? What does that look like? And what does that mean to the business community?

    It begins with community participation - from students, parents, neighbors and business people. When you go to one of the Thursday night Create-a-thon meetings, you'll see a community of adults and students enthusiastically engaged in designing a school that provides students with an opportunity to learn in an environment that fosters real learning.

    With that in mind, here are 3 reasons your business may want to participate with the Fort Smith Future School program 

1. Participating business owners have an opportunity to make an educational difference by giving interns exposure to a real world work experience.
2. Be pro-active! Many of us are greatly concerned with the lack of fundamental skills possessed by high school students. The Future School program gives business owners an opportunity to participate in a program that can provide a better pool of future workers. 
3. Knowledge share. Nobody knows your business like you do. But...you'd be surprised at the fresh ideas these youngsters come up with that just might be the solution to a problem that has caused you a struggle.

     Fort Smith Future School is competing in a nationwide competition to win $10,000,000 from XQ: The Super School Project. Lauren Powell Jobs, widow of Apple's Steve Jobs, has committed $50,000,000 to seed the XQ project. Future School is in the running with 200 innovative schools to win one of the five $10,000,000 awards that will be announced in August.