How To Customer Service Strategy

It does not matter whether a retailer offers "the best products" available in the retail industry, when dissatisfied customer prevails or, absolutely no customers are present to purchase them. Customers, without whom retailers crumble, are the most important asset to any retailer. It is highly recommended that CSRs are to be tended as one's paramount strategy to attain a valued and flourishing business.

As soon as a customer enters a retail store the look and feel strikes pronto. The bright lightings and warm colors affect the customer's perception creating an instant impact on their minds; consequently building an emotional relationship between them and the store. A pleasant store design, that enables to find merchandise conveniently, and helpful employees, who promptly focus on their needs, are the factors that intensify customer's shopping experience. By paying keen attention to visual factors retailers could increase the value of their merchandises and services offered.

Following the visual factors is a most influential aspect, which is how well customers are treated by retail employees. Retail employees are the face of a retail organization. Since they are the first contact, their approach, behavior and ability to build a rapport will decide upon the brand image. Customer complaints lets retailers to interact with customer and can acquire detailed information about services and products. Few of common customer complaints are:

1. Lying about products and being dishonest: Customers expects to be treated fairly

2. Rude, harsh and disrespectful employee treatment: Employees need to regard customers with respect

3. Long waiting line at checkout: Customers like to wait a short time, not for hours

4. Ignorant employees: Employees who do not bother to respond, who seem annoyed at request or who are not well informed about products, irks customers

5. Employees with misplaced priorities: Employees who attend to their personal needs and keep the customers waiting, angers customers

Customers tend to react emotionally over service problems. Retailers need to let them vent their anger without interruption. They need to be patient and respond sympathetically. Handling customer complaints is an opportunity to retailers to fix service oriented problems.

Choose a Pricing Strategy For Your New Product

A price is everything a customer would have to give up in exchange for a product or service. It is usually expressed in a currency, such as Pound Sterling, Euros or US Dollars. It can be effected by a number of things, but the most common factors are the cost of production, competitor's prices, customer demand and the state of the economy. But how do you price a new product?

If your product is entirely unique and new to the market, you have two strategic options. The first is called Price Skimming. This is when you set a high price to maximise profit, in order to recover as much research and development cost as possible. When demand begins to fall, you lower the price to appeal to the less well off market segments. Price Skimming works well with 'early adoptors', such as game consoles. However, you run the risk of no one buying until the price drops.

The second strategy for unique products is called Penetration Pricing. This is when you set the price lower at first, to aim to get as much market share and customer loyalty as possible, before raising the price later. Penetration Pricing works well with products that people will need to buy more than once. However, this could backfire if a competitor lowers their prices to compete with yours, which would make it difficult to raise the price later.

If your product isn't new and has many competitors already, you have the following two options. The first is Price Leadership. This is when a large, established company sets the price for the product, often above the current market rate, and smaller competitors tend to change their prices accordingly. However, this is only suitable for established companies with a strong brand or a designer/luxury brand such as Chanel (This is called Prestige Pricing).

The second option is being a Price Taker. This is when smaller firms follow the prices set by a market leader. They will usually set their price just under them to create a USP and become more competitive. If a smaller company had a unique selling point other than a lower price, they could use their leverage by using price skimming or penetration.

Ways to Sell To the "Do Nothing" Custome

The do nothing customer isn't doing nothing. Just because they aren't buying your product doesn't mean they aren't acting. They are doing what they are comfortable with. The idea of change, even good change, is too scary to overcome the benefit of the solution your are proposing for their problem. No matter how good the solution is, it will still mean change.

Most sales people will be frustrated with the "do nothing" customer and work harder and harder at showing how deserving their product or service is. They will talk about ROI, how many successful implementations they have, list testimonials, show more ROI, get personal endorsements. And still, the customer does nothing. But, they aren't doing nothing. They are defending themselves against change. Change sucks. Even very well-managed change is painful.

How many of us know people who stay in horrible relationships because the idea of being on their own or finding someone new is so frightening? The same thing is happening with our prospects.

Instead of making the solution appear to be even more wonderful, so they feel even worse about doing nothing, focus on the how to make the change easy for your customer.

Ask yourself these questions.

How much time will it take to transition to our new process/service/product?

What is the opportunity cost to make this transition? In other words how much income producing or expense reducing time will be lost while they spin up on your product?

How can you introduce your product or service on a trial or limited basis to prove ROI and lessen its impact?

Can roll your product or service out in phases?

How can you show that your product or service pays back the opportunity cost quickly?

How will you make your product more fun than what they are using now?

How can you help the customer manage the change?

Here is how this sounds.

Tips to Find a Concealed Spy Camera

With the help of modern technological innovation, spy cameras have become much more compact, to the point where they're able to now be hidden almost anyplace. It is possible to obtain mini spy cameras that are no bigger than rolling dice and may even be small enough to slip into a ball point pen. They can be concealed in stuffed animals, toys, plants, in an aspirin container or even in an aquarium. They may be incorporated into various electronic devices, including smoke alarms, power outlets, alarm clocks, wall clocks or even in a wrist watch. There are two basic kinds of spy cameras: those using cables or wireless cameras. Traditional security cameras such as those used by businesses or organizations to monitor their staff or for fraud prevention, usually have wiring and may just be vaguely concealed, while micro spy cameras are employed for exactly that, to spy, and so they are usually wireless, smaller, and really well disguised. A mini spy camera usually lacks a visible lens and is able to send a video transmission to a screen or receptor situated a long away. Spy cameras are really easy to hide and can be hard to detect, but it is possible once you discover how.

Take a Good Look Around

Start by making a detailed visual assessment of the area where you suspect the camera to be concealed. Put yourself in the mind of the individual that you suspect is spying on you. Where would you conceal the camera? Where would you least expect to discover it? By way of an in depth visual inspection it may be possible to locate the hidden camera without having to use of any other tool or detection product, which means you can accomplish it free of charge to you. While you search, keep in mind that the camera is not going to necessarily be hidden at eye level. It may be hidden in the ceiling, in the overhead lighting fixtures or located somewhere in the carpet or floor boards. Closely examine all of the electrical devices, outlets, alarm clocks and wall clocks, table lamps, as well as plants, flowers and toys for example.

How to Track Your Bridal Show Efforts

One of the many complaints I hear from wedding professionals is they don't know if they got brides from a bridal show; they don't know if it worked. You may ask a bride where she found out about you and oftentimes, her reply is, "I don't remember." Of course you are frustrated because how do you know if your advertising dollars are working for you if the reply is often "I don't know."

So what can you do to avoid this frustration if anything at all? Today's article is about ways to know if brides came to you from the bridal show. Now please keep in mind this is not fail proof. A bride could see you for the first time at a bridal show, then find you again on a site that you advertise on like Wedding Wire, and when she does a Google search for, how to word wedding invitations, an article you wrote comes up in the search and she clicks on it to read it. After seeing you three times, she decides to call you. When you ask her how she found you, her reply is, "I found an article that you wrote on the internet." She actually found you at the bridal show, but that was awhile ago and she doesn't remember. She remembers the last place she saw you. Please keep this in mind before saying the bridal show didn't work. It actually did.

Here are 5 Ways to Track Your Bridal Show Efforts:

1. Specific Domain Name. You can purchase a separate domain name, different than your website domain and use it only for your bridal show marketing materials. Since this domain is only being used for the bridal show, you have a good idea of knowing if brides even bothered to come to your site to learn more about you and your services.

2. Landing Page. A landing page can be used for several purposes. For a bridal show, you can have a landing page created that speaks specifically to the brides at that particular bridal show. Let's say you are going to the Arlington Bridal Fair. Your landing page can have a home page with a special offer addressing the Arlington Bridal Fair Brides (not a complimentary consultation if that is something you offer to everyone, everyday. She needs to feel special), a page on the site with a variety of pictures from past weddings, and a contact page with your information and a form. Sometimes going to your website can be overwhelming and distracting. This allows her to have a sample of you.

3. Phone Number. When I go to bridal shows and look through the program of the vendors, I see everyone is using their regular phone number. I wonder how they know if someone is calling them from the bridal show or not. There are companies that provide what are called tracking numbers. These numbers allow you to find out who is calling and when. This number can be used solely for when you attend a bridal show.

How To Financial Risk of Venturing For a Capital

Business plans made by an individual requires a strategic plan that is sure to make a business grow. When you decide to put up your own business, a need for you to release an enough amount of money is required. Every business involves money since this is the main foundation of everything related to business. Businessmen are required to venture into capital before everything starts up. The capital for every business depends on how big the business would be. Businesses are offered in different branches and productivity. Services, products, real estate are just some of the different kinds of business being offered in the market at the present. When we talk about service kind of business, this could be about transportation, spa and communication types. This kind of business is typically the most expensive line. This comes for the reason that when you choose to render services, you are required to hire a major labour workforce to make the business function. One example for this one is the telecommunications companies who are usually following the corporate capital venture.

When we talk about venturing into the capital sense of owning a business, this could some up to the kind of ownership a business has. Typically there are three types of business ownership being practiced in venturing into the business world. This comes in the form of sole proprietorship, partnership and corporation. These three types have their own advantages and disadvantages. Let's start with the first kind of business ownership which is the sole proprietorship. When you decide to have your own business you can have a choice to be the sole owner. This one is ideal for a small kind of business, it is better to start small and flourish to a bigger and successful one than be the other way around. Sole proprietorship would require you to do everything on your own when it comes to producing the capital and the things that go within it. One given disadvantage for this kind of ownership is the consequence of paying the business tax without anyone to share it with.

How To Take Basic Safety Training in Your Own Time

Healthy and safety is the number one priority within a workplace. After all, a lot of time is spent there and all staff have the right to feel safe. It is therefore essential that everyone in a workplace receives general health and safety training in case any accidents take place. By doing this training, all staff will also be given the knowledge and ability to prevent accidents from take place in the first place.

Ask yourself, would you feel safer at work if your colleagues were all given health and safety training? There would be a more widespread knowledge of potential hazards if everyone within your workplace were to do the same basic safety course. This would mean that these would be identified easier and faster than before and a solution can be found to reduce the risk of an injury occurring. It is likely that this will make you and other staff, feel much happier and safer to be working in that environment.

Essential health and safety training courses cover all of the basic safety aspects within your working environment. Whether you are an employer or an employee, they will enable you to have a better understanding of the hazards that are present in your workplace. They will also provide you with the ability to spot these hazards and find a solution to eliminate them before any accidents take place.

However, you might be putting off attending a course and you simply can't take time out of your busy day. You may be under the impression that in order to do a basic safety course, you would have to take time out of your busy working life and spend an afternoon or more in another room with the course leader. Or maybe you believe that you actually have to leave your workplace completely and visit an external location that specialises in providing this training. Whilst this is often the case, there are methods of undertaking basic safety training within your actual working environment and in your own time. A computer with internet access is all you would need.

There are companies in the UK that specialise in providing essential health and safety training packages online or via CD-ROM. Carrying out your general health and safety training by this method means that you can do it as and when it is convenient for you; there is no need to disrupt any of your busy work life, or take hours out of your day travelling to another location.

Ways To Lowering Your Business Expenses

Having been in the capacity to work with businesses and their management teams for more than 25 years, there is really nothing more pleasurable and profitable for a business and its owners than finding ways to lower their expenses. Over time, a businesses' expenses can become bloated and having a new set of eyes review their financial data, such as financial statements, invoices, and other key documents, is a great way for business owner's and their management teams to re-gain some financial perspective.

Recently I began working with a business that was introduced to me by a center of influence (COI) that I call on often for referrals. Developing your network of COI's is one of the best ways to prospect and build a list of clients and customers. COI development is a topic I will save for another time; however, if you would like to know more about this sales development technique before then, don't hesitate to contact me through my website listed below.

My COI warned me that the business owner he was referring to me was an expert in all aspects of running his business. I was told that the only reason he was agreeing to speak with me was as a courtesy to my COI because ultimately he did not believe that I would be able to show him how to reduce his businesses' expenses by any significant amount. I was more than willing to take up this challenge and I worked with the business owner over a period of several weeks and was finally able to get some information to review which I thought would bear financial fruit. After a few days of analysis, low and behold, I showed the owner a way he could cut one of his expense categories by more than $8,000 annually.

Another client I work with owns a large business, and has a full-time chief financial officer (CFO). I have known the owner for many years, and I initially pitched him on the idea that I would come in as a second set of eyes. I told him my goal was not to see if the CFO was doing anything wrong, but rather that I wanted to serve almost as a member of the accounting and finance team with a different skill set. I told the owner that I would look at his business from my perspective, which was different from his accounting staff's because of my background in banking and finance.

Tips to Find Work in These Tough Economic Times

If you're struggling to find work in these tough economic times you might want to check you are doing everything possible to find work. Finding jobs in newspapers and job centres is just one avenue to check. But if you are applying for work without even getting to an interview you might want to rethink.

Is your CV really selling you and your best attributes? There is plenty of help available if you need help writing your CV. There are websites which offer to help you write a better CV but including plenty of free advice. There is a government website which helps with all aspects of CV writing. Also your local careers and colleges should offer advice and help with CV writing.

Once you have a decent CV it's a matter of getting it visible. Recruitment agencies are a great way of finding work as they do all the hard work for you. When you sign up with a recruitment agency you can sit back and let the jobs offers come to you. They will put you forward for jobs that they believe are suited to your experience, qualifications and needs. You will get paid via the agency and quite often you will get more money than those working for the same company.

Obviously this shouldn't be your only port of call when it comes to finding work. But if you sign up with a few agencies it won't be long before you get approached and offer a position. As well as joining agencies you should sign up for some of the professional network websites such as LinkedIn.

There are many online recruitment agencies and many specialise in a particular area of work. So if you are looking for work in the IT field your best bet is to look for an agency which specialises the IT field. Whatever your field of work is, you can be sure that there is a recruitment agency which has expertise in that field.

Employers tend to use these agencies when they want to find staff to cover holiday and sickness, tackle specific projects. Also many employers will use agency staff as a way of vetting potential staff. Many employers prefer to use agencies as it means they don't have to go through CVs and arrange interviews. The agencies do all the hard work and match potential candidates with relevant employers.

Some Tips to Remember (Selecting Corporate Workwear)

Imagine the scenario where your clients are visiting your office. How would it look if your employees are seen in shabby clothes that look old and unkempt? Definitely your clients are not going to be impressed, and it would reflect adversely on your business as well. A place where "first impression is the best impression" is effective a lot in the corporate world. The image you give to those around you is noticed and counted and going to be major criteria in your appraisal by others. The same rule applies for your corporate workwear as well. An elegant and respectable corporate workwear is important for your company in creating a positive impression on your clients and customers.

The role of corporate workwear is more and more recognised today which is why many companies are opting for it to enhance the effect they create on others. Though it might not be preferred by all the employees, it definitely gives out an impression of unity and loyalty to others. Selecting a proper and elegant corporate workwear can in fact change the opinion of those who oppose to a 'uniform' at their work place.

Here are a few tips in choosing the best corporate workwear for your employees:

1. Choose a design that goes well with the type of company you run. In other words, it has to reflect the product or service you provide and thus create a feeling of brand awareness.

2. Pick the best colour to suit equally well for men and women. You can pick the colours from your business logo but what if those colours are bright orange or fluorescent green? Hence, choose discretion while you select the colours and designs.

3. Ensure that the workwear is comfortable in all climates. Casual shirts or tops are fine, but not during winters, right? Hence, you need to take into consideration the temperature of the locality and the workspace while choosing the workwear.

How To Using Social Media Effectively in Healthcare

Using social media to expand a healthcare practice is new, but the principles involved are the age-old successful promotional actions of old-just less legwork.

With roughly 200 million U.S. Facebook users (according to Facebook), 13% of American adults now use Twitter and 84% of Americans have cellphones (according to a report from the Pew Research Center).

Social media is in now widespread use and is the new way people interact with friends, family, colleagues and patients. It's a major shift in the way we deliver communication, but not in the message we send.

How can a healthcare provider use this new communication media to grow one's practice? A practitioner could spend many hours of his or her valuable time tweeting, posting and commenting. Or, could come up with a way to use this new media with as little effort as possible, yet still insure a definite return on your investment (ROI).

In advertising or promotion, it is important to use more than a single medium to reach people. A person sees your ad in a local newspaper, but that does not guarantee they will immediately respond. However, seeing that ad every week for three weeks, seeing a flyer in their mailbox about your practice, seeing you listed in Google maps and seeing you on Facebook all adds up to establishing one's presence in the community. The better and more firmly established the presence, the more likely they are to respond and become a patient.

The value of using social media really starts to become clear when you see just how many people a practice can reach with just the right message at the right time.

Here Essential Aspects of Business Card Printing

Are you looking for information regarding the present rates of business card printing? Do you want to know how to design it? Are you searching for beneficial processes to mass produce color business cards and then distribute them? Well, all of your questions and more can be clarified on this quick information guide. Find the important information you want below.

1. The costs

Printing business cards can actually be a cheap matter. If you ever print your individual business cards, you can possibly have a few of pieces printed from your own color printer for a couple of bucks cost of card paper. If you want your company cards professionally imprinted, you can get color business cards printed for as low as 15 dollars (for 250 pieces). With regards to the printer that you spoke with you can even reduce these costs far more when you select your own cheaper selections for paper stocks, color inks etc. So as you can see, almost anyone can print on their own without too much of a dent into their wallets.

2. The design

Card concepts right now is usually broken into two main categories. There are actually some card design that come from templates, and also there are others that are tailor made.

Most cards that are designed from templates are usually cheaper and easier to make. If you don't mind other people making use of almost similar design as your own business card, then the templates are the best since they are far much better to produce. However, if you want full personalization, then you'll definitely really should make a design yourself, or hire someone to make the design for your needs. This will cost more yet the design can be distinctively your very own.

3.The production

The easiest and quickest way for you to mass produce your cards would be to have them printed with a professional printing firm. Almost all printing companies have online portals where one can ask for the printing quotations. Typically you can actually order already from the websites and even identify each of the printing options. It merely requires your credit card handy for payment and all the printing can be accomplished and sent to you.

What Makes It Different? (Qualitative Research)

It's important for companies to gain a personal understanding of their customers and target market in order to maintain a successful and profitable business. Qualitative research is an essential tool that will quickly and easily help companies analyze unstructured information that is gathered through interviews, open-ended survey questions, or feedback forms so that they can measure a consumer's purchasing behavior, motivations, and attitudes. Using qualitative research methods focuses on the "why" and intends to figure out more than just numerical data.

The following are all business areas that can be successfully measured using regular and online qualitative research methods:

Customer Profiling - This area identifies an individual's interests, attitudes, and opinions about certain products or needs. By analyzing a person's life experiences, influences, uniqueness, and motivations a company will gain a better understanding of how to create successful products and services.

Feelings & Concepts - It's important to look far deeper into what a consumer means when they give a brief explanation to an answer. When asked the question "what do you think," most consumers will simply say something like "It was good" or "It was bad". These general statements will give a company an idea of what is acceptable and what needs to be fixed, but it will not give a solution on how to fix it or how to improve to being "spectacular". Qualitative research encourages consumers to elaborate and expand their ideas, feelings, and concepts. The goal is to figure out the main source of their reaction and what causes them to feel that way. Finding out that they are unhappy because they were treated poorly is more informative than finding out that they are just unhappy.

Shopping Experience - When a company decides to launch a new product or has decided to slash prices in order to stay competitive with stiff competition, qualitative research will help them identify if there is an issue causing them to lose market share. It can figure out the reasons behind customer preferences, their perceptions and preconceived notions, and thought process prior to making purchases in order to assist the company with gaining back market share or adjust marketing means or project strategies.

Tips To Increase Trade Show Displays Traffic At Your Next Show

With the socialization of the internet, it is really easy to target a specific niche of people and gain new customers without them physically being at your business location. Social media has made it possible for businesses to grow locally and around the world, while not having to leave the comfort of your favorite office chair.

Of course, meeting in person is just as important because it will allow you to build a whole other level of trust in your relationships that often isn't possible online. That is why trade shows and conventions are a popular way for small and large businesses to market their products or services.

So, how can you integrate social media into your trade show display booth? Here are a few ideas to help get your social media campaign off the ground and increase traffic to your trade show exhibits.

Embed Social Feeds On Your Site

It should be easy for anyone to find your Facebook posts and latest tweets on Twitter by inserting them on the home page of your site. If you have specific hash tags near your Twitter feed that include the name of your company or event is important. This will allow you to track what people are saying about you and your display stand and engage with those people.