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Kids, This Christmas Meet Your Match: Self Storage

Self Storage Unit Rentals become Santas Closets

Where do you hide your Christmas Presents from the Kids?

The recent stories about Black Friday shopping, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday are  reminders that the holiday gift buying season is officially in full swing. Visions of folks coming home with a car full of presents or the delivery truck pulling up to the curb to drop off the internet purchases made this writer wax nostalgic about my younger days when every year my three brothers and I engaged in a yearly Yuletide game of hide and seek with our parents.

Every year my parents would hide the holiday gift purchases in a spot they thought was secure, and every year we would find the stash spot. Of course, my kids have inherited this trait and every year they seem to find the spot we have determined just couldn’t be discovered.

Self Storage Unit Rentals Make Great ‘Santa Closets’

Self Storage Space For Rent

Self Storage Units Are Great 'Santa Closets'

Sadly for my gene pool, this fall I drove past a self storage business and had a brainstorm. As I looked upon the neatly organized rows of securely locked storage cubicles I suddenly realized I was looking at the solution to the annual find the gift hiding spot contest. Why not rent a self storage space?

Then I ran the idea past a couple of my friends and was hailed as a genius. It seems I don’t have a patent on this annual game as they too lamented their inability to find a gift hiding spot that couldn’t be discovered in their homes.  A couple of buddies suggested we pool our resources and form a gift hiding conglomerate at a local self storage location.

So now I wonder if I am being cruel as the poor kids will ransack the house once again this year only to come up empty handed.  Will they think they’re being skunked? That mom and dad are bust? Then I fast forward to the morning when they finally see their gifts which have been safely stored off site  and all is well. The fact that the scene will be repeated at my co-conspirators homes just adds to my mirth.

The best thing about the whole experience so far is that I have a bit of extra space in that storage rental unit so I have permanently relocated a few of my personal belongings there for safe keeping and to free up a little room around the castle. Everybody is happy. Except the kids, for now.

Article written by +Bob Schrichte for +RentItToday

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Rent Quiet Emphasized at NIOSH Buy-Quiet Meetings

Construction equipment, industrial machinery, and power tools continue to evolve enabling people to accomplish jobs faster, more efficiently and safely. Demand for equipment designed to increase production and profit will always be a dominant market force within the manufacturing industry. Equipment design and functionality is also influenced by competitive forces driven by the need to develop machinery that can do more but cost less. Considering how powerful such economic influences are it is naive to think user safety is always the top priority when designing machinery.

Rent Quiet part of Rent It Today's Rent Safe Initiative

Renting tools and the construction equipment rental industry were brought to the forefront of related discussions in recent “Buy-Quiet” meetings hosted by The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). These meetings included global thought leaders working on the Buy-Quiet (BQ) initiative.

Buy-Quiet is both a call to action and program that is conceptually straight forward: give consumers the option to buy tools and equipment that produce less noise in order to help prevent hearing loss among workers using them. The broader focus of the BQ program involves increasing the demand for quieter machinery in order to influence manufacturers to produce it. Buy-Quiet (BQ) is a National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) jointly organized by the NORA Construction Sector and Manufacturing Sector Programs, and the NIOSH Hearing Loss Prevention Cross-sector Program.

Rent Quiet at RentItToday.comRenting or “Rent-Quiet” is inherently a concept of Buy-Quiet. The words buy and rent are interchangeable within the context of purchasing equipment relative to its use by consumers and workers.

In the case of noise exposure, hearing protection is certainly a valuable tool used to prevent hearing loss. However, a significant opportunity to bring about long term change in reducing noise exposure and thus hearing loss comes from “prevention through design” initiatives like Buy or Rent-Quiet.

If you are unable to eliminate hazards or remove workers from a dangerous environment the next course of action is to minimize the risk from exposure. Programs that offer resources to help people “Rent Safe” (a resource being developed by RentItToday.com for 2012) or more specifically Rent-Quiet are a viable way to bring safety awareness to the construction and manufacturing industries.

Link to NIOSH Noise Meter

Try The Sound Meter at CDC.gov CLICK HERE

A recent article from the NIOSH science blog mentions some of the challenges that come with getting manufacturers to become vested in and prioritize the production of safer, quieter tools and machines. One sure-fire way to bring about change from equipment manufacturers is through influencing consumer purchasing decisions. How is consumer purchasing influenced with respect to buying quieter equipment?

One way is by developing resources that educate and bring awareness to consumers regarding noise levels associated with different types or models of machinery. Examples of such resources include the NIOSH Noise Meter which enables people to listen to different sounds and noise intensities of commonly used items while learning if they could cause hearing loss. Another example is the NIOSH Power Tools Database which enables one to compare the noise levels produced by different tools.

Ultimately if workers and consumers have access to resources that enable them to make informed decisions regarding how safe (or loud) the tools and machinery they rent are, one may increase demand for safer, quieter, equipment thus bring us full circle in the hierarchy of controls and eliminating the hazard.

Written by +Matthew Stephenson of +RentItToday

Follow #rentquiet on twitter @RentQuiet

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San Francisco Bay Area Hosts Abilities Expo Nov 18 – 20

Wheelchair Van Rental San Jose CA

MobilityWorks Rents and Sells Wheelchair Accessible Vans

 

If you live in or near the San Francisco Bay Area and utilize or are considering a mobility vehicle, MobilityWorks has some great news to share with you.

Check out the latest and best in wheelchair vans and accessible vehicles when you attend the Abilities Expo to be held at the San Jose Convention Center from Friday November 18th through Sunday November 20th, 2011.

Rent It Today partner MobilityWorks offers accessible wheelchair van rentals in San Jose, CA and the entire Bay Area. They are excited to be a participant in the Abilities Expo. MobilityWorks has a local store in San Jose that will be displaying wheelchair van conversions, the Conquest Motorcycle and a GoShichi Accessible pickup truck.

In addition to MobilityWorks, other leading equipment providers will be on hand to demonstrate their mobility products including BraunAbility and VMI.

Abilities Expo is in San Jose CAProducing events like this throughout the USA, The Abilities Expo serves as an informative showcase for individuals wishing to learn about recent developments in disability products and services. Workshops, activities and displays promote attendee knowledge of mobility equipment options. It’s a fun event so bring your smile and join MobilityWorks to socialize with old friends and meet new ones.

The Abilities Expo is free to attend. For more information you’re invited to explore the special events page for complete details and directions:
www.abilitiesexpo.com/sanjose/specialevents.html

Where:
San Jose Convention Center
150 West San Carlos Street, San Jose, CA 95113

When:
Friday, November 18th: 11am-5pm
Saturday, November 19th: 10am-5pm
Sunday, November 20th: 11am-4pm

Admission: FREE

MobilityWorks is a member of the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association (NMEDA), and serves the mobility needs of the disability community from 14 locations in the USA.

MobilityWorks Serves the needs of the disability community

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Don’t Disguise Your Halloween Spirit On October 31st

 

Happy Halloween from Rent It Today

The final day of the month of October brings Halloween. Rent It Today wants to take this opportunity to say Happy Halloween to our fans, followers, visitors, and rental partners.

Halloween is a fun day and it’s a prime opportunity to spend quality time together as a family. If you have young children, dressing up in costumes and going trick or treating is always anticipated by the kids, and parents enjoy watching their offspring participate in the activities they did as kids too. If your kids are beyond trick or treating age, getting the family together to enjoy young visitors to your front porch is fun , too.

A lot of the appeal of trick or treating these days is going through the neighborhood and seeing all the Halloween ideas and Halloween decorations that people come up with to express their creativity and entertain their neighbors and young visitors.

Even if your nest is empty or you do not have children, Halloween can be a spirited evening. Opening your door to the kids and handing out treats while observing the various and imaginative costumes is a lot of fun. It’s guaranteed to bring a smile to your face and to make you feel like a kid again. The kids love hearing you compliment them on their Halloween costumes as you drop a treat into their outstretched bag.

Costume rental has always been a popular segment of our web site, and Halloween certainly is the busiest period for visits to a Halloween rental store. Halloween costumes can be found in traditional forms like ghosts, skeletons, and other supernatural figures as well as popular characters from fiction, celebrities, and cartoon and fantasy figures.

Costumes became popular for Halloween parties in the US in the early 1900’s and continue to thrive today for both adults and children. The number and variety of offerings in Halloween costumes is sure to amaze you, and you might be tempted to wish Halloween came more than once a year. Donning the guise of your alter ego, favorite superhero, or taking on the identity of a celebrity is a lot of fun, and is sure to get you in the spirit of Halloween.

A lot of folks these days also enjoy renting costumes to greet their visitors during the trick or treat ritual. When you open your door dressed as a superhero, celebrity, or cartoon character, you’ll be treated yourself to wide eyes from your visitors.

Rent It Today wishes everyone a happy and safe Halloween, and save us a piece of candy, will ya?

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Sponsoring The Indianapolis Scottish Highland Games

RentItToday.com Sponsors the Indianapolis Scottish Highland Games

Indianapolis Scottish Highland Games

On Saturday, October 8, 2011 The Scottish Society of Indianapolis will host the Indianapolis Scottish Highland Games and Festival  at the Latvian Center.  The Festival is scheduled from 9am to 5 pm CST.  Admission is $10, ages 7-12 are $5, and age 6 and under are free. RentItToday.com is pleased to sponsor the event.

A full schedule of athletic events is planned, sanctioned by NASGA–North American Scottish Games Association. There are over 25 Scottish Highland Clans represented at the event.

Visitors will have a chance to enjoy clan tents and learn about the history of some of the ancient Scottish clans and their honorable extended families. There will be a wide variety of vendors, kid friendly activities, and entertaining events. Attendees will have the opportunity to enjoy traditional Scottish foods, free Scotch tasting, live Scottish music from local Celtic bands (Mother Grove, Isaiah’s Cry, Ken McGee), bag-piping, sheep dogs, a youth area, Scottish dancing, and a ceilidh in the evening. Youth Activities, Calling of the Clans, and Opening Ceremonies begin at Noon so mark your calendar now for October 8, 2011!

Rental companies sponsoring the event include MacAllister Machinery, Ace Rent A Car, Aaron’s Rent, and Rent It Today.

About The Indianapolis Scottish Society

The Indianapolis Scottish Society was formed  in 1983 as a place for all people to celebrate Scottish heritage, culture and history . From humble beginnings as a small group meeting in an apartment clubhouse, the organization has grown to over 200 members.

The Scottish Society of Indianapolis does not require its members to prove their Scottish heritage or linage. It seeks those that enjoy and simply love celebrating all things Scottish. The Society has wide diversity in its members, and is composed of genealogists, historians, reactors, pipers, dancers, story tellers and those drawn to the history, heritage and culture of the Scots and Scotland.

For more information on The Scottish Society of Indianapolis, please visit their web site.

For more information on the Indianapolis Scottish Highland Games, please visit their web site or Facebook page.

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Rent Anything Anywhere

Rent It Today Video Update: “Rent Anything Anywhere”

Following the recently produced “Loving Renting” video, Rent It Today launched the next video that will precede a massive video marketing campaign designed to feature and showcase the rental industry. The new HD quality video  has an epic feel to it….

“Rent Anything Anywhere” – zoom into earth’s atmosphere and fly through the clouds while watching a myriad of videos playing in boxes swirling around you that feature the vast array of rental industries and items available for rent throughout North America on RentItToday.com.

The video was produced for the Rent It Today YouTube Channel by Roger Akers, our video production and marketing director.

Share this video: http://bitly.com/RentAnythingAnywhere

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Construction Equipment Rental Orlando FL

Anticipated demand for construction equipment rentals in Orlando, Florida has spurred major industry player Volvo Rents to acquire the Orlando based company Contractors Equipment Rental (CER). The acquisition allows Volvo Rents to continue expansion of its growing network of company-owned heavy equipment and power tool supply businesses throughout North America.

Orlando Backhoe Rental from Volvo Rents

According to Construction Equipment Distribution Magazine (CEDMAG), the construction industry in the Orlando and Central Florida areas are working through a challenging time right now, however the region’s long-term future holds promise.

Volvo Rents plans to capitalize on an increase in local construction spending estimated to approach $30 Billion between 2012 and 2016.

“Since 2002, when we initiated a relationship with Volvo Rents, I have had admiration for the integrity of the Volvo Rents management team and their commitment to local decision-making.  The company’s culture of taking care of our employees and customers made becoming part of Volvo Rents an attractive decision for my family and my employees,” explained Gary Tripp, owner of Contractors Equipment Rental. “Volvo Rents is embarking on a significant expansion, and we are looking forward to facilitating their growth.”

With the purchase of CER, Volvo Rents now operates four equipment rental locations in Florida including Port St. Lucie, Tampa, and Pompano Beach. Purchasing an established Orlando construction equipment rental location was a logical decision given the size of the Florida market. Additionally the acquisition of the Orlando location enables Volvo to effectively provide equipment rentals throughout the majority of Central and South Florida.

“Contractors Equipment Rental’s commitment to customer care and local decision-making has enabled the Tripp family to assemble an excellent team that is fully committed to VIP customer service,” said Mike Crouch, Vice President, Business Development. “Gary Tripp and team will serve a significant role in the expansion of Volvo Rents in the state of Florida.”

Volvo Rents now provides the entire Orlando metropolitan area with an extensive line of construction equipment rental options. Furthermore by offering a comprehensive selection of heavy equipment that includes backhoes, excavator rentals, earthmoving machines, material handling trucks, aerial work platforms, landscaping equipment, and power tools they are able to service the construction, commercial, industrial, and homeowner industry. Volvo Rents of Orlando has special monthly rates on boom lifts, scissor lifts, bucket trucks, dump trucks, and forklift rentals. Their equipment is conveniently offered by the day, week, and month.

In addition to purchasing an Orlando, FL company, Volvo Rents recently acquired a Salt Lake City, UT construction equipment rental company and a CE company in Milwaukee, WI. They operate over 70 equipment rental locations throughout North America that fall within their growing network of company-owned and franchised rental stores.

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Loving Renting

Rent It Today launches a new video titled “Loving Renting”

RentItToday.com would like to thank all of our rental company partners, consumers searching for rentals, and supporters. From humble beginnings rooted in a desire to make renting simple, Rent It Today has grown and now offers over 60,000 diverse items for rent, attracting more than 125,000 unique visitors per month.

Visit our YouTube Channel

Share this video: http://bit.ly/LovingRentingRentItToday

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Is Google Plus a Sexy Twitter or Clean Facebook

Effectively marketing a company, website, or service online forces you to keep up with current search trends which inevitably includes the use of social media networks as internet marketing tools. Whether actively engaging in social media networking for personal or business purposes, you’ve probably read about the Google Plus Project.

What do you think about The Google Plus Project

Have a Google+ Account? What do you think about Google+?

Talk about Google+ has dominated Twitter, blogs, and social media news outlets for some time. Since it’s launch the majority of excitement and discussions have centered around Google+ being a social network to rival or replace Facebook. A quick search of article titles over the past few weeks covering Google+ will produce endless results illustrating this:

Opinions vary from article to article. One of the more interesting articles on the subject I discovered on Google+ was shared within a circle of Mark Dilley from AboutUs.org.

After reading the article, I set out to get other people’s opinions of Google+.  A lot of the feedback discussed how clean, simple, and even elegant Google+ is. This reminded me of what everyone was saying years ago, shortly after I finally set up a MySpace account. All the sudden my friends said I had to join Facebook. Are you kidding me? I just figured out this MySpace thing. It seems like yesterday people were talking about how refreshing, simple, and easy Facebook was both in design and ability to follow / communicate. They were right. After joining Facebook it did not take long to leave the glitter filled landscape of MySpace behind. Make no mistake, I do not think Facebook is going anywhere (quite the contrary). Nevertheless the fact that a lot of current Google+ vs Facebook feedback mimics past MySpace vs Facebook dialogue gives one reason to pause.

Just as thought provoking was a simple post within Google+ by Richard Ord, owner of the iEntry Network & WebProNews.com, asking the question “Is Google+ a Twitter replacement? Just wondering.”  I found this particularly interesting considering Google’s recent move to drop it’s real time feed and contract with Twitter.

Which led to the question at hand…Is Google+ a sexy Twitter or a clean Facebook?

The book is out and opinions will vary. Google always had all the individual pieces that make a network like Facebook popular and powerful; they had  just never successfully put them all together. Google+ certainly appears to do that. Furthermore, Google did a masterful job of looking at the social media market space and listening to people’s tweets, likes, & dislikes in order to produce what appears to be a sustainable and powerful communication tool that has tremendous potential. Google+ could replace any number of social media networks for individuals, or simply be an additional internet communication tool…time will tell…for now I’ll follow Mike Elgan’s advice and refrain from calling Google+ a Social Media Network. (Just as Google does)

Here at Rent It Today we have always been early adopters of new social media networks. Social media is integrated, in a variety of ways, throughout our website and advertising platform. Now the wait begins for the forthcoming Google+ for Brands. – Matt Stephenson Google+ – @MattRentItToday – RentItToday.com Facebook

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Video Marketing: Rent It Today Launches its YouTube Channel

YouTube LogoBelieve it or not, YouTube has become the number two search engine on The World Wide Web. According to comScore in November 2009, 146 million Americans watched videos online, streaming a total of 12.6 billion video clips.  Those are some big numbers which will certainly continue to rise, as gadgets like iphones wind up in the pockets of just about everyone.  People are searching YouTube for anything and everything.  If you are looking for the latest news clip or information on a random topic odds are you can find the broadcast or a short video about it.  From rental property tours and company profiles, to the endless “how to” videos including topics like food recipes and “how to tie a fishing knot”,  you can search and watch it on YouTube.  With this in mind and plans in the works for Rent It Today to launch its video marketing services, we thought it was a good time to officially introduce Rent It Today’s YouTube Channel.

Here are a couple of nice videos, produced by Roger Akers, explaining Rent It Today’s philosophy and background that we used to launch the Rent It Today YouTube Channel:

Why Choose Rent It Today?

How We Got Started.

In 2010 Rent It Today will start producing informative videos featuring our rental categories, along with entertaining and funny videos intended on creating “viral” content to help brand our name.  In addition several video marketing services will become available to individuals and companies that wish to create video content to market their rental inventory.

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