Quality, Competence, and Consistency

Do customers trust your business? Can they be confident that when they purchase something from you, they’re going to get what they expect every time? Do they know that your employees are going to do their jobs well to facilitate that experience? Every business owner wants to believe the answers…
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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…
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The Agony of Waiting on Hold

If you haven’t said it yourself, you’ve likely heard someone else say, “Can’t I just talk to an actual person?” Phone trees can be miserable with their confusing options, long hold times, sometimes shrill hold music, and other annoyances. Despite the increase in web-based retail and customer service, over-the-phone service…
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Communication Is Key Part 4

In parts one, two, and three of this series, we’ve taken a look at the different types of communication that happens within a business. This has included the top-down edicts from leadership to subordinates, the bottom-up disclosures from subordinates to leadership, and the interpersonal talk between peers and teams. All…
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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…
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Communication Is Key, Part 2

As we mentioned last week in part 1, there are four types of communication that govern the way that people interact with one another in a company. In the previous post, we discussed upward communication; that is, the type that happens from subordinates to their superiors. We also explained why…
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Communication Is Key, Part 1

The writing experts at Grammarly.com have an article that breaks down the four types of communication that happen at a business: “upward, downward, lateral, and external.” These directions indicate who’s talking with whom, and what their interpersonal relationships are with one another. Think about this in terms of a business…
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The Antidote for Inflation

Whether the United States is now in a recession has been the subject of much political posturing and debate. Regardless of how any of us feels about labels or technical definitions, the U.S. economy has shrunk two consecutive quarters amid soaring inflation and higher interest rates. A silver lining is…
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