public marks

PUBLIC MARKS from ferrancastella with tags marketing & strategy

January 2007

How to be customer unfriendly

Revolutionary transformation can have great power - but evolutionary change may keep your customers happier and profitably on board

Complaints + Compliments = Good communication | Business Management | Sappiens.com

Some companies track a monthly "complaints and compliments ratio" for each branch, store, department, country or station. This approach has a fundamental flaw. Here's why:

The Police debates

In today's world of intensifying competition and rising customer expectations, organizations need staff who understand key issues and appreciate sometimes conflicting points of view.

20 Words to Build a Better Future | Sales Management | Sappiens.com

If you want to increase sales, enhance customer service or consistently improve performance, ask your customers this question (20 words):

In Your Best Interest | Sales Management | Sappiens.com

A diversified medical group suffered from a common procedure that frustrated patients, doctors and laboratory technicians every day. First, doctors sent their patients to the laboratory for tests. After the tests, patients asked the laboratory technicians

Grow Your Small Business to the Next Plateau | Small Businesses | Sappiens.com

It's been said that the hardest task in sports is hitting a fast ball. Clearly, the folks who say this have never tried hitting a golf ball. Anyway, here's my nomination for the most difficult task in small business: Growing to the next level when you ha

Pro-Networking: Creating Connections

There are any number of different networking groups and events that you could choose to attend. To make the most effective use of your time and energy, it's worth investing effort in identifying and sampling groups that look like they might suit your pers

100% is Not Enough. You Need 120% | Business Management | Sappiens.com

If you work hard and smart you may finally reach the top - #1! And then what? If you want to stay there, you've got to work even harder, and smarter! Give it your all. Give it your best. Give it 120%.

December 2006

Business success strategies - Get Beyond The Lies to Recovery

As a recovering workaholic/perfectionist, not to mention having delusions-of-superhero syndrome, I'm first to tell you the road to recovery isn't easy. But it is worth it. Here are 3 tips to get you started. But I'm also here to tell you that it DOES get

How 'Effective' Were You Today? | Business Management | Sappiens.com

Okay, you believe you had a great day at work today; that you accomplished a lot. And maybe you did. Then again, maybe you didn't do as much as you might think

Why We Resist Change

Change is a fact of life and as such, we must either learn to adapt to it or perish. In fact, it is our duty to change, to aspire, to progress, to seek perfection and evolve. Change is natural.

Get Yourself Spring-Loaded

An e-mail arrived with a fragmentary phrase that absolutely caught my attention. The writer referred to many upset customers being "spring-loaded in the pissed-off position".

Speaking of Motivation for Security or Business Success

We all know that you can't buy your way to happiness. Every guru and every religion teaches that: often right before they pass the collection plate. But we all keep trying. There's certainly nothing wrong with achieving financial security. But is that all

Strategic Business Planning - Don't Plan to Fail By Failing to Plan | Business Management | Sappiens.com

Developing a Strategic business plan is a crucial element in determining your ongoing business success. You can maximise business growth and minimising risk through effective strategic and contingency business planning. Plans do not have to be set in conc

November 2006

In the Spirit of Service

The "Spirit of Service" Award is given to uniquely deserving teams and individuals who go way beyond the call of duty to serve, aid or comfort the heart of another human being. One worthy winner is an unnamed night nurse in the maternity ward of a nearby

Finding the Right PR Just Got Easier | Public Relations | Sappiens.com

Here's how easy it is to make the changeover from PR tactics like that to PR strategy where the payoff is much richer, namely, nothing less than those managerial objectives of yours

PR: Here's What Works | Public Relations | Sappiens.com

When it comes to public relations, what can work best for you as a business, non-profit, government agency or subsidiary manager, is doing something meaningful about the behaviors of those key outside audiences of yours that MOST affect the department, gr

Managers: You Know YOUR job, But What About Public Relations? | Public Relations | Sappiens.com

Sure, you're a business, non-profit, association or government agency manager specializing in activities like sales, human resources, distribution, finance, program management or any of many other operating functions.

Want to Light a Fire Under Your PR?

Yes? Then do something positive about the behaviors of those important external audiences of yours that MOST affect your operation.

How to Create Quality PR Results?

For many of us, the word quality is closely related to our expectations. When we receive the public relations results we planned for, we feel, understandably, that we have generated quality results.

What Are We Teaching PR Students? | Public Relations | Sappiens.com

How to do brochures, throw parties, talk to reporters and write press releases? Or, are we teaching them what PR's fundamental premise says we should be teaching them?

Maybe You SHOULD Worry About Your PR? | Public Relations | Sappiens.com

Especially if your public relations budget is all about tactics like brochures, special events, talking to reporters and press releases.