Today's Number: 900 - Casual-dining restaurants expected to be added by Overland Park, Kan.-based Applebee's International Inc., up 64 percent from the 1,400 now, chief executive officer Lloyd Hill said without providing a timetable.

        Today's Money Tip: If you plan to buy a car from a dealer, decide on a target purchase price before you start shopping. Do some homework: find out the manufacturer's suggested retail price (often called the “list price”) and the dealer's invoice price, or what the car cost the dealer. The editors of Money magazine then suggest focusing any negotiation on that dealer cost. For an average car, 2 percent above the dealer's invoice price (that would be $400 on a $20,000 car) is a reasonably good deal.

        Today's Career Advice: Make a point never to answer the telephone on the first ring, suggests Debra Koontz Traverson in Outsmarting Goliath. When phones get answered on the first ring, it gives the caller an impression that you don't have anything better to do than wait for the phone to ring. “Likewise don't wait until the fourth ring,” Ms. Koontz said. “Callers will immediately begin to imagine reasons why it takes your company so long to answer, such as customer service is a low priority.”

        Today's Company: POLE/ZERO CORP.

        TURN THE RADIO ON: Since 1989, this West Chester company has designed and manufactured tunable filter products for a variety of radio frequency (RF) requirements. Many of these products are used by the military and are found on ground mobile, shipboard and airborne platforms.

        The filters help protect radio communications from frequency interference and from jamming.

        CLEARING THE AIR: More recently, Pole/Zero has applied RF filter technology developed for military applications to the burgeoning commercial wireless market. Its products cover frequencies from 1.5 megahertz to 2 gigahertz in 10 radio bands.

        RIDING THE (RADIO) WAVES: In its 13 years, Pole/Zero has grown from a handful of employees to a staff of 110. Its facility has expanded three times. The firm is now planning to lease adjacent space. Revenues have experienced double-digit growth almost every year.

        Send tips and questions to Bill Ferguson at bferguson@enquirer.com

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