First and Last Impressions

Emotion plays a significant role in the relationship between a business and its customers, coloring every moment from when they walk through the door to when they use leave again. Happiness and satisfaction, frustration and disappointment: nothing impacts customer-retention rates more than these feelings. And good interactions lead to more…
VIEW FULL POST

Extinct by Instinct

As a counterpoint to last week’s blog on analysis paralysis, let’s talk about the other extreme end of the spectrum: extinct by instinct. This is the result of making a choice without due consideration. This kind of recklessness can result in an unforced error that can be detrimental (or even…
VIEW FULL POST

Analysis Paralysis

We are sometimes our own worst enemies, the obstacles to our own success. We self-sabotage without even realizing it when we think we’re just being thorough. In the process of decision-making, be it in life or business, we can fall victim to something called analysis paralysis. What is that? You…
VIEW FULL POST

Stay on Offense

We’re in the middle of the NFL playoffs, so the timing seems appropriate to talk about the importance of offense. Not football offense, of course, but business. And like a playoff, your business is playing for the right to play again next week. Win or go home. Succeed or go…
VIEW FULL POST

From Vision to Fruition

Every business owner should have a vision for what his or her company should ideally be. That vision should include expectations like offering a superior customer experience with high-quality products and services. But how do you do this? Think of your vision as a goal, what you hope your business…
VIEW FULL POST

Customer Service Starts with Company Culture

While we should hope that every business wants to deliver a top-shelf customer experience, complete with great products, convenience, and a well-trained staff, far too many fall short of these lofty standards. Worse still, there are many companies that seem to have accepted their shortcomings as being necessary, especially in…
VIEW FULL POST

Solve Frustration with Communication

With staff shortages and supply-chain interruptions, every industry is marred by mounting delays: car dealerships, book publishers, healthcare, retail, restaurants, and more. We’ve all experienced it one way or another, from empty shelves at our grocers to longer waits at understaffed restaurants. Economically speaking, long-term staff shortages and supply-chain issues…
VIEW FULL POST

What a Dirty Bathroom Says About Your Business

An old-timey saying tells us that the devil is in the details. Put another way, we are warned to not get so caught up on the big picture that we neglect the little things. Pay attention. Look for the small concerns before they burgeon into full-blown problems. But the big…
VIEW FULL POST

Communication Is Key Part 3

In parts one and two of this series, we discussed the kinds of communication that happen between leadership and the rest of the company, from the top down to the bottom up. We explained why it’s so important for leadership to be transparent, clear, and concise in their message to…
VIEW FULL POST