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Write You - Leave the Spam Out of Your Customer Service
So your self-employed, or at least doing something on the side of the 9-5 to make some extra cash. You find pride in your entrepreneurial ways. You are creating something from nothing. You feel good about it, and you should. But how does the spouse feel about it? Do they understand the time, research and learning curve involved? Do they even appreciate what you’re trying to do? How do you get on the same page?Whatever your venture may be, there is an obvious way to live happier, get more done, and yes, make more money in your business. You ready for the answer? Your spouse. Yes, your spouse. Remember them? The one you have decided to partner with in everything thing else in life? Believe it or not they could very well be the missing ingredient. Trust, common goals, likes, dislikes, this is what brought you together in the beginning, and over time, they can be forgotten, changed, or vanished all together. But aren’t these the same qualities you look for in a business partner? Why not? The sim
Stationery Supplies refers to all those items of stationery that could be used in business, office, home or school. To cater to such a vast segment of customers, shops selling these Stationery Supplies need a large assortment of items to be readily available with them. At times, the stationery suppliers even tend to provide printing and customization services to their clients.The Stationery Supplies business is very lucrative, due to its consistent demand. Since there are a huge number of items that can be categorized under Stationery Supplies, some suppliers have opted to supply a particular type of stationery only. For example, there are stationery marts supplying only wedding, Christmas or office stationery. They would be one-stop shops for all requirements related to wedding or Christmas or office needs. So their scope of work also extends beyond stationery.Taking for example office supplies, which has a wider scope than Stationery Supplies. It also includes furniture items, mach
But, we don’t typically think of spam in terms of customer service. We should though because, no matter how it’s being used, spam is dangerous and damaging to businesses that use it.
Before we start, let’s define spam so we know how to identify it outside of the world of email. I define “spam” as:
“Any communication, which imposes a cost on me to receive, which is forced on me, by someone whose primary intention is to serve their needs and who has no obvious reason to believe I am interested in what they offer.”
Let’s break this down into its pieces so we can see what’s going on with spam.
First, it’s a communication. That’s obvious. As a communication, we know spam is the result of someone wanting to deliver a message to someone else.
Second, spam costs me to receive it. It might cost me by using my Internet resources. Or maybe it costs me by using my time to go through junk mail or answer junk phone calls. The resulting junk mail also imposes a cost on me to dispose of it.
Third, the sender gives me no option. They intrude into my world and dump their message onto me. To avoid most spam I would have to make huge changes to my life, like cloistering myself in a north woods cabin and living off the land. Otherwise, I have no choice but to be exposed to spam.
Fourth, the sender is spamming me in an attempt to serve their needs, not mine. Their primary motivation is to meet some need they have (usually to sell a product). I’m not suggesting I would not benefit by accepting their offer. I might. But the critical point here is that the spammer is focused almost 100% on meeting their needs. Anything I might get from the transaction is a distant second in their p
Sometimes you have a minute to make a difference, sometimes you have a few seconds to make a difference. If you are lucky, you have an hour or maybe a day or two to make a difference. Time crunches in on you when a disaster like the terrorist attack on September 11th strikes. At that time, leadership emerges. Whether it is your greatest hour or your worst is up to you.In every age, there comes a time when a leader must come forward to meet the needs of the hour. Therefore, there is no potential leader who does not have the opportunity to make a positive difference in society. Tragically, there are times when a leader does not rise to the hour.The following are seven leadership practices seen in times of crisis:Stand up and be seen.Justice must not only be done but must be seen to be done. The same goes for leadership. This is not the time to lock yourself away in strategy sessions. It is time to be visible.Embrace brutal optimism.In the end
Before we start, let’s define spam so we know how to identify it outside of the world of email. I define “spam” as:
“Any communication, which imposes a cost on me to receive, which is forced on me, by someone whose primary intention is to serve their needs and who has no obvious reason to believe I am interested in what they offer.”
Let’s break this down into its pieces so we can see what’s going on with spam.
First, it’s a communication. That’s obvious. As a communication, we know spam is the result of someone wanting to deliver a message to someone else.
Second, spam costs me to receive it. It might cost me by using my Internet resources. Or maybe it costs me by using my time to go through junk mail or answer junk phone calls. The resulting junk mail also imposes a cost on me to dispose of it.
Third, the sender gives me no option. They intrude into my world and dump their message onto me. To avoid most spam I would have to make huge changes to my life, like cloistering myself in a north woods cabin and living off the land. Otherwise, I have no choice but to be exposed to spam.
Fourth, the sender is spamming me in an attempt to serve their needs, not mine. Their primary motivation is to meet some need they have (usually to sell a product). I’m not suggesting I would not benefit by accepting their offer. I might. But the critical point here is that the spammer is focused almost 100% on meeting their needs. Anything I might get from the transaction is a distant second in their
First for those of you who are new to the idea of franchising, here is a brief definition: Franchising is the permission given by one person, (the Franchisor) to another person (the Franchisee) to use the Franchisor's trade name, trade marks and business system, in return for an initial payment (the franchise fee) and further regular payments (royalty fees).Here are some common sense tips to help you do your homework:1. Meet the Franchisor and as many of the people in the operation as possible. Ask yourself how you feel about them, do you like them, trust them, enjoy their company? Do you want to “partner” with them for a long period of time as you develop and run your business? Be sensitive to how the franchisor treats you while you are evaluating the opportunity. Are they timely, professional, open, understanding. Do they communicate appropriately and frequently and show integrity? These first interactions are an important indication of the for relationship you would have with the F
Let’s break this down into its pieces so we can see what’s going on with spam.
First, it’s a communication. That’s obvious. As a communication, we know spam is the result of someone wanting to deliver a message to someone else.
Second, spam costs me to receive it. It might cost me by using my Internet resources. Or maybe it costs me by using my time to go through junk mail or answer junk phone calls. The resulting junk mail also imposes a cost on me to dispose of it.
Third, the sender gives me no option. They intrude into my world and dump their message onto me. To avoid most spam I would have to make huge changes to my life, like cloistering myself in a north woods cabin and living off the land. Otherwise, I have no choice but to be exposed to spam.
Fourth, the sender is spamming me in an attempt to serve their needs, not mine. Their primary motivation is to meet some need they have (usually to sell a product). I’m not suggesting I would not benefit by accepting their offer. I might. But the critical point here is that the spammer is focused almost 100% on meeting their needs. Anything I might get from the transaction is a distant second in their
A note from us…My favorite time of the year is finally here! No, not spring…NCAA tournament time!My close friends know I’m wild about college basketball, and especially my beloved Duke Blue Devils. They’ve had a tough year but I still love ‘em. I’ve been a fan even before Coach K arrived on the scene. One of the most exciting things about the tournament is that on any given day, anything can happen. No one’s team is out until the buzzer sounds.The tournament is exciting on so many levels. Not only is every game full of drama, but there are life and business lessons to be learned too.Bring a TV to the office to watch all the action and you can tell people you’re studying the leadership and business lessons.In the meantime, here are 5 lessons you’re sure to learn while watching this year’s tournament.Go Duke!The Top 5 business lessons from the college basketball tournamentBusiness life is full of sports metaphors. But the upcoming tournam
Third, the sender gives me no option. They intrude into my world and dump their message onto me. To avoid most spam I would have to make huge changes to my life, like cloistering myself in a north woods cabin and living off the land. Otherwise, I have no choice but to be exposed to spam.
Fourth, the sender is spamming me in an attempt to serve their needs, not mine. Their primary motivation is to meet some need they have (usually to sell a product). I’m not suggesting I would not benefit by accepting their offer. I might. But the critical point here is that the spammer is focused almost 100% on meeting their needs. Anything I might get from the transaction is a distant second in their
So, earlier this week, I watched the movie "An Inconvenient Truth".That's the one where Al Gore travels the world giving his presentation on global warming.Now, politics aside, the movie gave me a hands-on lesson about the power of commitment, and in this article, I’m going to show you how you can use this power to get your customers to commit to the sale...You've probably heard of the commitment and consistency principle. Dr. Robert Cialdini explores it in his classic book, "Influence". Simply put, the principle says that when we take a stand on something, we're under tremendous psychological pressure to behave in a manner consistent with that stand.So what does that have to do with Al Gore, you ask?Well, I've never been very environmentally conscious. I mean, I used to watch that "Captain Planet" cartoon back when I was a kid, but I digress...After seeing the movie though, I found myself thinking "Wow, I wonder what I can do to help solve the problem."th, the sender is spamming me in an attempt to serve their needs, not mine. Their primary motivation is to meet some need they have (usually to sell a product). I’m not suggesting I would not benefit by accepting their offer. I might. But the critical point here is that the spammer is focused almost 100% on meeting their needs. Anything I might get from the transaction is a distant second in their priority list.
Fifth, they are completely indiscriminate in who they send their spam to. In my book, this is the worst sin spammers commit. They engage in no targeting, no filtering, no planning whatsoever. They just lock and load and blast away. Thus, most of their spam goes to people who have no interest in what they’re offering.
When you look at spam this way, you realize, it’s not just in email. Spam is everywhere. For decades, marketers have been spamming us. They’ve been doing it for decade because it worked for many years.
But the world has changed.
It’s the 21st century and people are sick and tired of getting spammed. From the moment we wake to the moment we lie our heads down, we are exposed to spam. And since it’s gotten less effective, many mega-marketers have cranked up their output. Apparently, their strategy is “if it’s not working as well as it used to, then you should do more of it.”
Some spam is so subtle, we don’t always recognize it right away as spam. Often this is because it’s done in person, not in written or broadcast format.
Here’s a recent example:
A couple weeks ago, I rented some movies at our local BlockBuster. Every time I rent a movie they ask me if I want candy. Or they ask me if I want to join their current monthly program. Sometimes they ask both.
Every time I say “no”. In fact I say it multiple times because they usually don’t listen. They’re so focused on their spiel they don’t bother to notice I’ve said “no” 8 times before they’ve finished.
Then, they often end with a smart-aleck remark like “yo
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