THE QUOTE OF THE DAY...

One of the secrets of life is to keep our intellectual curiosity acute.
— William Lyon Phelps

from bookreporter.com

The Wealthy Blogger - Money Management Musings from two Decidedly Un-Wealthy Bloggers

Interest trends found out there in the blogosphere world. I think Fabian did the right thing and that he will definitelly get the return on his investment.

The Wealthy Blogger - Money Management Musings from two Decidedly Un-Wealthy Bloggers
August 24th, 2005 by admin
Filed under: Uncategorized

I want to thank Jeremy and Mike for the smooth transaction.

Yes I bought a blog! Why on earth would somebody buy a blog?

The answer is simple: it's called a return on investment. Where better to prove this then here ? : "August 24th, 2005 by admin
Filed under: Uncategorized

I want to thank Jeremy and Mike for the smooth transaction.

Yes I bought a blog! Why on earth would somebody buy a blog?

The answer is simple: it's called a return on investment. Where better to prove this then here ? ;-)

Many of you now will think: what's next.?

My plan is to keep the Wealthy blogger alive. On a personal level I am more interested in how to keep
my earned money (tax related) then credit cards and investment tips.
If I blog about credit cards it will only be about anonymous South American cards.

Technorati tags: blogs,investments,sell

Permalink: http://www.wealthyblogger.com/uncategorized/this-blog-is-sold-part-ii/

BusinessPundit: Your Daily Dose of Competitive Advantage

BusinessPundit: Your Daily Dose of Competitive Advantage: "Doing the Right Thing: TypePad Has Guts

After outages affected TypePad users, the CEO let's them pick how many days of free service they get for their incovenience. There's a whole school of business thought that says 'but wait, what if they all select the maximum amount? We will miss $$$ worth of revenues.' But I'm with Typepad, believing that they just sent a message to their customers saying we trust you and we care about your blogging experience, and that it will pay off in the long run. It never hurts to build good business karma.
Posted by Rob at 08:34 AM

I love a company that bends over backwards for me, as a human being and a customer. I will buy what I don't need, just to reciprocate, but I hate companies that do not give a rats ass about their users or customers. I am very sorry for the folks at Yahoo. The more they ignore me the more I will fight for my needs, wants and humanness. I am still being totally ignored by a company that built its reputation around customer service. I know I have not bought anything directly from them (that I know of). But at least Yahoo could have the decency and right human relations to respond to my pleas for help. Instead, they continue to ignore me. Cool. I love blogging!

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.businesspundit.com/cgi-bin/mt-tb.cgi/2407

8 Rules For Good Customer Service

I just had to blog this in it's entirety. It will not only help you go a long way in sales and marketing, it will also help you in life...

8 Rules For Good Customer Service
Your Guide, Susan Ward From Susan Ward,
Your Guide to Small Business: Canada.

Good Customer Service Made Simple

Good customer service is the lifeblood of any business. You can offer promotions and slash prices to bring in as many new customers as you want, but unless you can get some of those customers to come back, your business won’t be profitable for long.
Good customer service is all about bringing customers back. And about sending them away happy – happy enough to pass positive feedback about your business along to others, who may then try the product or service you offer for themselves and in their turn become repeat customers.

If you’re a good salesperson, you can sell anything to anyone once. But it will be your approach to customer service that determines whether or not you’ll ever be able to sell that person anything else. The essence of good customer service is forming a relationship with customers – a relationship that that individual customer feels that he would like to pursue.

How do you go about forming such a relationship? By remembering the one true secret of good customer service and acting accordingly; “You will be judged by what you do, not what you say.”

1) Answer your phone.

Get call forwarding. Or an answering service. Hire staff if you need to. But make sure that someone is picking up the phone when someone calls your business. (Notice I say “someone”. People who call want to talk to a live person, not a “fake recorded robot”.) For more on answering the phone, see Phone Answering Tips to Win Business.

2) Don’t make promises unless you WILL keep them.

Not plan to keep them. Will keep them. Reliability is one of the keys to any good relationship, and good customer service is no exception. If you say, “Your new bedroom furniture will be delivered on Tuesday”, make sure it is delivered on Tuesday. Otherwise, don’t say it. The same rule applies to client appointments, deadlines, etc.. Think before you give any promise – because nothing annoys customers more than a broken one.

3) Listen to your customers.

Is there anything more exasperating than telling someone what you want or what your problem is and then discovering that that person hasn’t been paying attention and needs to have it explained again? From a customer’s point of view, I doubt it. Can the sales pitches and the product babble. Let your customer talk and show him that you are listening by making the appropriate responses, such as suggesting how to solve the problem.

4) Deal with complaints.

No one likes hearing complaints, and many of us have developed a reflex shrug, saying, “You can’t please all the people all the time”. Maybe not, but if you give the complaint your attention, you may be able to please this one person this one time - and position your business to reap the benefits of good customer service.

5) Be helpful - even if there’s no immediate profit in it.

The other day I popped into a local watch shop because I had lost the small piece that clips the pieces of my watch band together. When I explained the problem, the proprietor said that he thought he might have one lying around. He found it, attached it to my watch band – and charged me nothing! Where do you think I’ll go when I need a new watch band or even a new watch? And how many people do you think I’ve told this story to?

6) Train your staff (if you have any) to be ALWAYS helpful, courteous, and knowledgeable.

Do it yourself or hire someone to train them. Talk to them about good customer service and what it is (and isn’t) regularly. Most importantly, give every member of your staff enough information and power to make those small customer-pleasing decisions, so he never has to say, “I don’t know, but so-and-so will be back at...”

7) Take the extra step.

For instance, if someone walks into your store and asks you to help them find something, don’t just say, “It’s in Aisle 3.” Lead the customer to the item. Better yet, wait and see if he has questions about it, or further needs. Whatever the extra step may be, if you want to provide good customer service, take it. They may not say so to you, but people notice when people make an extra effort and will tell other people.

8) Throw in something extra.

Whether it’s a coupon for a future discount, additional information on how to use the product, or a genuine smile, people love to get more than they thought they were getting. And don’t think that a gesture has to be large to be effective. The local art framer that we use attaches a package of picture hangers to every picture he frames. A small thing, but so appreciated.

If you apply these eight simple rules consistently, your business will become known for its good customer service. And the best part? The irony of good customer service is that over time it will bring in more new customers than promotions and price slashing ever did.

Free Newsletter here

Powered By Qumana

Identity theft? Yahoo ignores my cause.

11/16/05

And I will not rest quietly until it gets solved.
A long time ago, I opened up a group thru Yahoo groups. Time went by (a few weeks or months perhaps) then, eventually I stopped posting for a while. When I came4 back to the site, I was not able to log in.
I went to their help site to find assistance, and then decided to finally give in and change my password.
Well after 4 times or so of giving them via their "unable to sign in" protocol my name, yahoo email address, and my mother's maiden name I gave up as the site repeatedly told me my mother's maiden name was the incortrect response for me to be able to log in.....
I left the issue to rest for a while, and tried again online. No success.
I gave them a call finally, as there is no email addresses to contact and no "real" people behind the sites. The person on the other side of the phone would not accept my basic information either and told me that my mother's maiden name was not the right one I had given!...
I the mean time, there is a new member, possibly two that have signed in to the group and have posted spam that has been there for the last year or more. I tried calling the company yesterday as well, to no avail. A series of recorded messages, but no real humans behind the scene.
I emailed one of their departments yesterday to no avail either.
So, I guess that my next campaign in life is to pursue my case until someone or anyone at the company decides to collaborate with my restoring my stolen identity and be given full rightful access to my group.
If you feel and believe that posting this in different places will assist me in my pursuits, please drop me a line at edfern34@hotmail.com
I will see that your efforts in assisting me with this issue get rewarded.
Thanks!

Godsdragon



UPDATE 11/22/05
I contacted the Company again. Have not heard from them.
They sent a survey, I filled it in with my thoughts and oppinions indicating there is a problem, but I guess they really do not care...

UPDATE 12/02/05
Have not heard from Yahoo as of yet...Could it be that it is not just me that gets the end of the stick here? I found this article today that could explain very well why Yahoo does not care about someone like me:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20051201/wl_afp/
iraq_051201185052;_ylt=Anz0pmdMejGb9ny9f_mZQMCs0NUE;
_ylu=X3oDMTA3b2NibDltBHNlYwM3MTY-










Technorati tags: identity theft,customer,Yahoo!,action

How to Market your Way out of Tough Times

How to Market your Way out of Tough Times
by David Garfinkel

There's gloom and uncertainty in the air, and most businesses are making a terrible mistake right now in their efforts to ride out the tough times. They're cutting back on marketing and waiting until the economy improves.

In an economy like this, cutting back on marketing is flirting with business suicide. What you should do instead is increase your marketing without increasing the amount of money you spend. This will not only protect you from sales declines, but will also strengthen your business against the threat of deep-pocketed competitors, who may see tough times as a great opportunity to outmaneuver you and grab some of your customers.

How do you get more marketing bang for fewer marketing bucks?"

read on...

Immigrant Resource Center in a Bind

Immigrant Resource Center in a Bind
Saundra Amrhein
St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
November 11, 2005
Copyright 2005 Times Publishing Company

A school that offers free English classes to adults might shut down if it can't come up with the money to apply for a zoning change.
SEFFNER - In their countries, they were dentists and business people.
But here in this breezy yellow brick house off Parsons Avenue, they are students seeking a path out of manual labor.
At the Multicultural Resource Center, more than two dozen adult immigrant students gather four mornings a week to study English in a house turned into a language school and computer lab.
Another 80 are on a waiting list.
But the popular school, which was started in the late '90s, might be shut down next month unless directors come up with $3,500 to apply for a zoning change. The county sought the change after a neighbor complained.
For many with night jobs or schoolage children to care for, the free morning classes are like a salvation.
"My daughter is studying in school, and how can I help her?" asked Carmen Moncayo, 45, originally of Peru. Her daughter is 9. "How can I help her if I don't know English?"
Seated next to her, 62-year-old Elsa Icaza, a dentist in her native country of Ecuador, can't return to her profession until she learns English. She cares for her two grandchildren in the afternoons and evenings.
"If it weren't for this (morning) class," she said, "I couldn't study."

read more...






Technorati tags: inmigrants,school,politics,money

Does BPO Have a Future?

October 5, 2005
Is Business Process Outsourcing Killing Itself?
By John Parkinson
As business process outsourcing looks to automation to cut costs, it just might be sowing the seeds of its own demise.

Ever since the process reengineering wave of the 1990s, businesses have been looking at their core operations with an eye to cutting costs. Companies typically have three options: Consolidate and standardize operating processes via a shared-services strategy; upgrade the level of automation to reduce labor costs and boost productivity; or outsource the process to a third party that can offer economies of scale, global sourcing economics or access to more focused management expertise
Is Business Process Outsourcing Killing Itself?
read more...

Newsletter 'Pathway To Success' #23, 2005, Subscribers' Issue

Several Serious Problems on the Internet Causing Unnecessary Failures
Irena Whitfield

In spite of the fact that the Internet creates millionaires every day, there are still tens of millions of people failing miserably. The three main reasons I mention in this Article may help you on your way to your goals.

read the rest of the article

Congress loves identity thieves

Security Watch: Congress loves identity thieves E-mail to a friend Send us feedback TalkBack:Add your opinion By Robert Vamosi Senior editor, CNET ReviewsNovember 11, 2005
Earlier this year, I wrote about several major data breaches at ChoicePoint, then LexisNexis. Headlines screamed how thousands--and in the case of CardSystems, millions--of individuals had their names, social security numbers, and other personal information exposed to god-knows-who. These revelations came only because of a California law, SB 1386, which requires companies to inform California residents if any data breaches occur. The Senate is currently considering a national version of the California law, but a weaker House of Representatives bill is rapidly gaining influence in Congress. If the House bill passes and becomes law first, future data breach revelations will be silenced, and data thieves will be free to run amok.
http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-3513_7-6381707-1.html?tag=nl.e757





Technorati tags: congress,identity theft,news

Remembering our Warriors...

The Pledge of Allegiance

I Pledge Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America

and to the Republic for which it stands,
one Nation under God,
indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

"Juro lealtad a la Bandera de los Estados Unidos de América

y a la República que representa, una nación al amparo de Dios,

indivisible, con libertad y justicia para todos."

http://www.defendamerica.mil/

Taekwondo Code of Conduct El Codigo de Conducta del Taekwondo
Be loyal to your country.Se Leal a tu Pais.
Respect your parents. Respeta a tus Padres

Be faithfulness to your spouse. Se leal a tu pareja.

Respect your brothers and sisters. Respeta a tus hermanos y hermanas

Be loyal to your friends. Se leal a tus amigos.

Respect your elders. Respeta a los ancianos

Respect your teacher. Respeta a tus Maestros

Be honest and always stand for justice. Se Honesto y siempre defiende la justicia.

Be courteous. Se cortes.

Never take life unjustly. Nunca tomes la vida injustamente.

Be loyal to your school. Se leal a tu escuela.

Finish what you begin. Termina lo que empiezes.

Never misuse Taekwondo. Nunca uses el Taekwondo erroneamente.

To whom it may concern...

If you are messin with this blog and you think you are smart, don't count it all glory... Just wait and see...

Technorati tags: hacks,evil doers,help,fear

Gratitude...

Ok, the first thing I'd like to talk about, since it is gratitude month, is exactly that. Gratitude. You probably ask yourself, well, what in the world are you talking about when the world is in such turmoil. And...the anser is still gratitude. When I am grateful for life living and those around me, I can't help but continue to think straight, I can't help but continue to be in awe about the incredible things that ARE still happenning regardless of all that is wrong. When I am grateful, I can't help but think that there is something or someone out there, or in here, somewhere, that is bigger than my thoughts, bigger than what could possibly be wrong...
When I am Grateful, there is a chance I can transfer that energy from within to things without. This preambles what I really want to talk about.
I want to talk about a place called Castle Cops. A place where there is never a dull moment. A place that has grown by leaps and bounds, that has what it takes to live in a world of bytes, hardware, software, thoughts, ideas, and a wide range of useful information for dealing with things online. It trully is a place that has made me put this blog aside and allowed me to realize that there is more to life than meets the eye, and that there is no computer problem to small or too big for a team to tackle it. It is a place where I have found many many solutions to simple and complicated problems with my computer. A place that glows with a true spirit of knowledge, teamwork, and sharing...

That, in a nutshell is the spirit of Castle Cops!
Have computer problems or software problems? Need an answer? Stop by and visit!

CLICK HERE!

Technorati tags: computer help,solutions,help forums,Castle Cops

Ok, Back again...!

It has been a while since I have posted anything here. Lots of changes, within and out there. Excuse? rarely so!. I have tried to diversify my ventures and new and exciting things have happened since I got that ball rolling...
Stick around, read on, cause it is getting better all the time!

Technorati tags: internet,news,help,solutions