International Carwash Association is mailing the first of its new Quarterly Wash Count reports to program participants this week. The new reports include the standard regional comparisons for Average Revenue, Wash Counts, and Ticket Average along with our exclusive ITR Economics analysis. We'll also have an education session and quick hit session on the program enhancements at The Car Wash Show 2015 in Las Vegas to help participants do more with the data. Wash Count is included with Premium Membership in ICA.

ABC30.com A.J. Rassamni from Great American Car Wash donated nearly 200 books to Birney Elementary. The books were brought in by customers at the Blackstone and Dakota avenues car wash as part of this year's Read Across America book drive. Great American Car Wash collected more than 700 books this year and will be increasing next year's goal to 900.

Hermiston Herald Five Star Auto Wash opened its doors in December and has since seen more than 5,000 vehicles come through to get cleaned. When the owners of Five Star Auto Sales took over the car wash on Elm Street, across the street from Wal-Mart, their goal was to provide residents with a service they haven’t seen in some time.

The Independent Florida Alligator Although most Gainesville, FL, residents grumble about pollen season, a select few rejoice, namely car wash owners. "Pollen season is a good thing for car washes," said Scott Martin, owner of Tropic Car Wash on Archer Road. Martin said he has seen the number of cars at his wash double thanks to pollen season.

NBC Right Now A bill moving through the Washington state legislature would increase the minimum wage around the state to $12 per hour by 2019. Jiffy Car Wash has been removing dirt for over 37 years and relies on minimum wage employees. Owner Roy Hulburt says if minimum wage were to increase by nearly $3, something would have to change. Either his service or how many employees he has on staff.

Think Advisor What is often overlooked during retirement income planning is the valuable tax credit that can help small business owners get their plans off the ground and turn a planning burden into tax savings for small businesses.

Miami Herald If you're self-employed, you probably spend your days focusing on your business. But regardless of the daily business issues, you also need to think about the future and start saving for retirement. Three common options for self-employed professionals or business owners are: traditional (non-Roth) Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), defined contribution (DC) plans like 401(k)s (again, non-Roth) and defined benefit (DB) plans like traditional corporate pensions.

The Wall Street Journal There are a couple of big problems with small-business retirement plans: Many small employers don’t offer 401(k)s or other savings plans to their workers. And at companies that do, participants are often saddled with high fees. Financial-technology startup Honest Dollar says it has a plan to change that, with a new option that is both simple and cheap.

Small Business Computing Do your subscribers give your email updates and promotions the cold shoulder? A new analysis from small business online marketing specialist Constant Contact reveals that your customers may suffer from information overload. "Less is more and being concise is better," said chief analytics officer Jesse Harriott.

Business 2 Community Some businesses (for various reasons) find it very difficult to engage their audience online. How could they possibly use email marketing to successfully grow their businesses? Find out as we explore email marketing lessons learned from the Mediterranean island of Malta.

Forbes With so many online avenues to consider when it comes to promoting your business online, email is often left in the dust. Social media sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn LNKD -1.05% often top conversations when it comes to identifying best practices for gaining online visibility. Yet email – as old fashioned as it may seem nowadays – still tops the list of best practices when it comes to marketing online.

Hydra-Flex, Inc., manufacturer of innovative fluid handling equipment, has named Tim Loughrey its new director of sales. This new position will included directing sales teams, as well as expansion into new markets.