The reason for a business wellness plan is simple. It's good business. I'm not talking about the good it does for your employees, and it does; I'm referring to the good it does for your bottom line. When expenditure brings a return, it's not cost; it's an investment. An effective wellness program has an ROI. [...]
There are challenges every small business faces. My father, a small business owner, said, "If you own your own business, you deserve it." To this day, I'm uncertain what he meant. How things were going defined his quote. Some days he was a damn fool, and others, he was a small business genius. The business [...]
How important is customer loyalty? The most expensive customer is the one you lose. Replacing lost clients with new prospects through marketing and advertising strategies is costly in dollars and time. Doesn't it make sense to focus on keeping the customers you have? The business world moves at such a hectic pace today that organizations [...]
What startup mistakes have you missed? You've recently started a business and hope to avoid common pitfalls. You've Googled "startup mistakes" and read 243 posts, all with titles beginning with a number and ending with "To Avoid," "Being Aware of," or "I Learned the Hard Way." And you've found some good advice. Some warnings have [...]
So, is your business paying enough? Money isn't the only or most common reason for employee turnover, but when the local job market averages higher wages than an individual organization's pay rate—it becomes significant. Employees may leave for lack of appreciation or better benefits. Still, when pay is significantly lower, it's like someone once told [...]
So, in business is there such thing as stagnant? More than 40 years ago, I worked for and was mentored by a man who changed my life. He saw more in me than I saw in myself. But it was more than that; he had worked his way up to the top rung, beginning on [...]
It's important to know how to recognize and avoid online scams any time of year but especially during the holidays. Last week, one of my wife's closest friends called, concerned that she had fallen for an online scam. Earlier that day, a pop-up, supposedly from Microsoft, filled her screen, informing her that her computer was [...]
So, does your business move at the speed of change? I remember attending a management presentation promoted as being geared toward small businesses. It lasted more than 45 minutes. It was all over the place. The presenter shared several acronyms verbatim from a PowerPoint presentation. Don't get me wrong, most of the content had merit. [...]
So, where does great customer service begin? One of my clients is a niche retailer. They've been in business for more than 40 years, establishing themselves in the market. They've done this by serving their customers and meeting customer needs. Although they're known for customer service, they retained me to identify opportunities to improve their [...]
There are more than 4 keys to great customer service but it starts with these 4. Without these 4 basic keys you'll fail and the nightmares will begin. You were awakened last night from a sound sleep by a nightmare. In your dream, a disappointed customer posted a not too complimentary video on Facebook. It [...]
